January 8, 2009 Obama warns recession could "linger for years" Play video

(Peter Howe, NECN) - "I don't believe it's too late to change course, but it will be if we don't take dramatic action as soon as possible. If nothing is done, this recession could linger for years. ''

That was the warning Thursday by President-Elect Barack Obama in a major economic speech at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia. It's 12 more days before he's officially president, but Obama was already in the bully pulpit, demanding Congress move -- fast -- on a huge economic stimulus package, saying otherwise, millions more Americans will lose savings and jobs "and our nation will sink deeper into a crisis that, at some point, we may not be able to reverse ... I'm asking Congress to work with me and my team day and night, on weekends if necessary, to get the plan passed in the next few weeks.''

The president-elect never talked numbers, but called for a huge stimulus bill that would include tax relief: "To get people spending again, 95% of working families will receive a $1,000 tax cut - the first stage of a middle-class tax cut that i promised during the campaign,'' Obama said.

Also, lots of government spending -- but not just traditional road and bridge projects. Obama wants a stimulus bill to double alternative energy by 2012 and build a "smart" power grid to move that electricity; energy efficiency in three-quarters of federal buildings and 2 million homes; computerize all medical records by 2014; and expand broadband internet nationwide and

"Our goal is not to create a slew of new government programs, but a foundation for long-term economic growth,'' Obama said. "The overwhelming majority of the jobs created will be in the private sector.''

Republican leaders like House Minority Leader John Boehner worried about adding potentially $800 billion to $1 trillion more to the federal debt, with Boehner saying "we can't buy prosperity with more spending.'' Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said he opposes flowing federal red ink to save states from hard budget choices and said any aid to state governments from the stimulus package should be loans, not grants.

But Massachusetts Governor Deval L. Patrick, who was on hand at George Mason to cheer Obama's speech, insisted the danger is not spending enough, saying the package has to be big enough to capture Americans' imaginations and inspire their confidence because the current crisis is not just an economic one, but a psychological one as well.