Obama calls for middle-class rescue plan

WASHINGTON, Nov. 8 (UPI) -- U.S. President-elect Barack Obama said Saturday he will move quickly on measures to aid struggling middle-class Americans hit by the financial crisis.

Delivering the Democratic Party's weekly radio address, Obama laid out his ideas for a "rescue plan for the middle class" amid dire reports of quickly rising unemployment, the Washington publication The Hill reported.

"First, we need a rescue plan for the middle class that invests in immediate efforts to create jobs and provides relief to families that are watching their paychecks shrink and their life savings disappear," Obama told listeners.

The Hill said the president-elect continued by saying, "Then, we'll address the spreading impact of the financial crisis on other sectors of our economy, and ensure that the rescue plan that passed Congress is working to stabilize financial markets while protecting taxpayers, helping homeowners, and not unduly rewarding the management of financial firms that are receiving government assistance."

In his own weekly radio address Saturday, U.S. President George Bush said he would help deal with the financial crisis by hosting the G20 summit in Washington on Nov. 15.