Source:  CNN.com

President Obama appeared before a national audience Monday night to make the case for his economic stimulus plan, saying this is not your “run-of-the-mill recession.”

The president stressed the urgency of passing the roughly $838 billion measure, which his administration and Democratic leaders say will help pull the U.S. economy out of its current skid.

“My bottom line is to make sure that we are saving or creating 4 million jobs, we are making sure that the financial system is working again, that homeowners are getting some relief,” he said in his first prime time news conference.

Obama’s remarks came the day before the Senate votes on its version of the stimulus bill. The House passed its version of the stimulus bill nearly two weeks ago — without a single Republican vote. If the measure passes the Senate, the two chambers will have to reconcile the differences between the two bills. See what’s in the bills »

Obama urged Congress “to act without delay,” saying that only the federal government can break the “vicious cycle” gripping the U.S. economy.

“It is absolutely true that we cannot depend on government alone to create jobs or economic growth. That is and must be the role of the private sector,” he said.

“But at this particular moment, with the private sector so weakened by this recession, the federal government is the only entity left with the resources to jolt our economy back to life.”

Obama said the plan was “not perfect,” but would create up to 4 million new jobs. Video Watch Obama explain how the plan will create jobs »

The president said 90 percent of those jobs would be generated by the private sector, a rebuttal of some conservative critics who say the plan amounts to little more than a government jobs bill.

Much of the package involves infrastructure spending, long-term energy projects and aid to cash-strapped state and local government. The president predicted that with his plan, the country would see significant improvement starting next year.

Republicans opposed to the plan say it includes too much wasteful spending and won’t stimulate the economy. Obama insisted he has been consulting with GOP lawmakers on the plan.

The campaign arm of Senate Republicans wasted little time Monday night calling into question Obama’s commitment to bipartisanship.

Even before the news conference came to a close, National Republican Senatorial Committee spokesman Brian Walsh released a statement saying, “President Obama promised change and bipartisanship in Washington, but that’s not what Americans have witnessed in the crafting of this gargantuan spending bill.

“Despite his rhetoric tonight, President Obama cannot possibly be proud of the final result — a bloated, trillion dollar spending bill crafted in a partisan manner that represents the same wasteful Washington spending and will fall on the shoulders of future generations.”

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