President Barack Obama, previewing a big push on the US economy next week, on Saturday defended policies that he said “have stopped the bleeding” and put the middle class on the road to recovery. Obama, struggling to bring down the 9.6 percent jobless rate, is to spend next week talking up proposals on improving the economy. He hopes to gain some traction with impatient voters as they ponder whether to toss out his Democrats in the Nov. 2 congressional elections. In his weekly radio and Web address, Obama pointed to measures funded by the Democrats' $814 billion economic stimulus as responsible for halting the economic slide he faced when taking office in January 2009. This includes spending on roads and bridges and money given to local governments to avert layoffs of teachers, firefighters and police officers. “The steps we have taken to date have stopped the bleeding,” Obama said. “But strengthening our economy means more than that.” Other steps, he said, were aimed at helping the middle class, citing a portion of his US healthcare overhaul that stopped insurance companies from refusing to cover people with pre-existing health conditions. Obama is trying to convince Americans that Democratic policies offer the best economic future for them as he seeks to turn back a strong challenge from Republicans for control of the US House of Representatives and possibly the Senate. Obama is to visit a labor rally in Milwaukee on Monday, the Labor Day holiday, and then is to lay out targeted proposals to boost job growth when he visits Cleveland on Wednesday. A presidential news conference is planned on Friday at the White House. A number of options are likely, such as extending middle class tax cuts, investing in clean energy, spending more on infrastructure, and delivering more tax cuts to businesses to encourage hiring. Research tax credit The New York Times reported late Saturday that Obama will ask Congress to increase and permanently extend a tax credit for business research expenses and pay for the program, which would cost up to $100 billion over 10 years, by closing other corporate tax breaks. Citing unnamed administration officials, the newspaper said Obama will outline the proposal in a speech in Cleveland. The White House chose the venue in part to draw a contrast with a recent economic address there by Ohio Representative John Boehner, the House Republican leader.
