Obama balances hope with reality

By Susan Milligan and Sasha Issenberg, Globe Staff

WASHINGTON -- President Obama, tempering the series of grim economic diagnoses he has delivered in recent weeks, sounded a new note of optimism tonight, vowing that "America will emerge stronger than before'' from the Wall Street meltdown and mortgage crisis that has sent the country into a deep recession.

"The weight of this crisis will not determine the destiny of this nation,'' Obama said in his first speech to a joint session of Congress. "Those qualities that have made America the greatest force of progress and prosperity in human history we still possess in ample measure. What is required now is for this country to pull together, confront boldly the challenges we face, and take responsibility for our future once more.''

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The remarks -- while not officially a State of the Union address, since Obama has been in office only five weeks -- had all the trappings of one: a national television audience, the walk to the rostrum through glad-handing lawmakers, the ordinary Americans sitting in the gallery and pointed out as living examples, and the series of standing ovations.

Obama used the occasion to explain the steps he has taken to revive the economy, and also to lay out a broader agenda, including a healthcare overhaul, improvements to education, and energy independence -- campaign promises that have been subsumed by poor economic news.

"Now is the time to act boldly and wisely -- to not only revive this economy, but to build a new foundation for lasting prosperity...." he said. "The only way this century will be another American century is if we confront at last the price of our dependence on oil and the high cost of healthcare, the schools that aren't preparing our children, and the mountain of debt they stand to inherit. That is our responsibility."

Obama also touched on the wars in Iraq, where he plans to withdraw most US combat troops by the summer of 2010, and Afghanistan, where he is dispatching 17,000 more troops this spring. But the ailing economy was a dominant theme in Obama's address, with the president urging worried Americans to unite to get through a crisis he said would eventually abate.

"The impact of this recession is real, and it is everywhere. But while our economy may be weakened and our confidence shaken; though we are living through difficult and uncertain times, tonight I want every American to know this: We will rebuild, we will recover, and the United States of America will emerge stronger than before,'' Obama said to resounding applause.

Obama still faces a reluctant and energized GOP minority, which has emerged from two devastating elections to form a determined and unified front against Obama's economic agenda. The president's $787 billion stimulus plan passed without a single House Republican vote, and garnered just three aye votes from Senate GOP moderates.

Delivering the official Republican response to Obama, Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal chastised Democrats for "irresponsible'' spending that would leave the next generation in crippling debt.

"The way to lead is not to raise taxes and put more money and power in hands of Washington politicians," said the charismatic and youthful Jindal, considered a possible presidential candidate in 2012. "Who among us would ask our children for a loan, so we could spend money we do not have, on things we do not need?"

The Democratic president is advantaged by approval ratings above 60 percent; polls released this week also show that Americans overwhelmingly believe Obama is reaching out in a bipartisan manner to heal the economy, and that voters are less impressed with the behavior of Capitol Hill Republicans.

But the GOP -- eager to redefine itself ahead of the 2010 election as the party of fiscal conservatism -- has shown little indication of letting up on its criticism of Obama's economic approach, even as some Republican lawmakers express their personal admiration for the popular president.

"He's a very capable individual. He's likable. We all like him. And I think the polls reflect the confidence that people have in him that was expressed last November,'' Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky told reporters today. "Everybody wants him to succeed, but that doesn't mean that we're going to have a debate-free environment.''

Obama generally struck a bipartisan tone, but several of his comments -- such as his observation that he "inherited'' a trillion-dollar deficit, or that his stimulus plan was free of earmarks -- brought party-line cheers and grumbles from the floor.

But Obama won unified and resounding applause when he honored a senator who was not present tonight: ailing Massachusetts Senator Edward M. Kennedy, whom Obama called an "American who has never stopped asking what he can do for his country.'' Kennedy, who is in Florida building up his strength as he battles a brain tumor, released a statement saying he was grateful' for Obama's "generous'' comments, and pledged to send Obama the national service bill he has written with his friend and colleague, Republican Senator Orrin Hatch of Utah.

Unlike many State of the Union addresses, Obama's hour-long speech was short on specific proposals and filled more with the rhetorical flourishes and broad pledges that helped take the freshman senator from Illinois to the White House.

But Obama won plaudits for speaking in more positive tones about the economy; some officials have suggested that Obama's dire comments have worsened the situation by making Americans skittish about spending money in the country's consumer-driven economy.

"People are really angry, they're frustrated,'' and want their president to acknowledge that, said Senator Olympia Snowe, a Maine Republican who supported the stimulus plan. "On the one hand, you don't want to sugar-coat it,'' but "on the other hand, you want to have a can-do spirit.''