Obama tells US of his radical new agenda

President uses his first weekly address to unveil bold plans for economy and the environment

Paul Harris in Washington
The Observer, Sunday 25 January 2009

The delivery of Barack Obama's first weekly presidential address to the nation yesterday was hi-tech, but his message was distinctly resonant of the 1930s.

With a calm voice and serious expression, Obama laid out the details of a massive economic plan aimed at rescuing the US economy, creating millions of jobs and "greening" the country's infrastructure.

In a clear echo of Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal, Obama urged popular support for the plan and published fresh ideas covering billions of dollars of investment in alternative energy and huge construction projects.