His first stop, heavily Republican Elkhart Indiana and later this evening he'll hold his first prime-time news conference.
During his weekly web address, President Obama discussed how his plan will fix the housing crisis and keep Americans employed. "It will save or create more than 3 million jobs over the next two years, all across the country; 16,000 in Maine, nearly 80,000 in Indiana, almost all of them in the private sector."
Elkhart can use the jobs. In the last year the unemployment rate there has tripled to almost 16 percent. One person surviving on unemployment benefits will introduce the president at today's event. "I even went to the dollar store, and they pay minimum wage, and I asked `are you hiring' and then said `no;' everywhere I ask, nobody is hiring," said Ed Neufeldt.
But back in Washington most senate Republicans remain united in their opposition to the stimulus bill that will be voted on this afternoon. They doubt the stimulus bill will pull the economy out of a deepening recession.
"The only thing this bill's going to stimulate is more government and more debt," said Sen. Mike Pence (R) Indiana.
"Every Republican congressman voted against it in the house, plus democrats. And all but three republicans stayed together on this," said Sen. John McCain (R) Arizona.
Right now the only Republican senators on board are the 3 moderates who helped broker this weekend's compromise. Even if it passes the senate, the bill still has to be reconciled with the house version.
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