Washington  - President Barack Obama will offer assurances that the United States will recover and emerge stronger from its worst economic crisis in decades, according to released excerpts of his speech to be delivered Tuesday evening to Congress.

But Obama will also challenge politicians and citizens alike to take responsibility for the country's serious problems and bring to an end an era that was dominated by a lust for quick profits and short-term gains.

Washington - President Barack Obama will offer assurances that the United States can recover and emerge stronger from its worst economic crisis in decades, according to released excerpts of his speech to be delivered Tuesday evening to Congress.

"While our economy may be weakened and our confidence shaken, though we are living through difficult and uncertain times, tonight I want every American to know this: we will rebuild, we will recover, and the United States of America will emerge stronger than before," Obama will say, according to the excerpts released by the White House.

Washington - US President Barack Obama and Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso pledged to work quickly and closely together to address the world's economic crisis during the first meeting of a foreign leader at the Obama White House.

Obama and Aso will work to jump-start consumer demand and unfreeze credit markets ahead of a global economic summit in London in April, the White House said. Obama told Aso in a brief appearance with the press that hosting the Japanese leader as his first foreign guest showed the importance of the US-Japanese relationship.

Washington - US President Barack Obama held his first meeting with a foreign leader at the White House on Tuesday, telling Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso that US relations with his country are the "cornerstone" of security in East Asia.

Aso's visit shows the importance of the US-Japanese relationship, Obama said, as the two countries try to pull out of their worst recession in decades. The United States and Japan respectively boast the two largest economies in the world.

Washington, Feb 24 : President Barack Obama is likely to announce former Washington Governor Gary Locke as his choice for Commerce Secretary.

A senior Obama administration official said Locke was the first Chinese-American governor in the US history, Politico. com reported.

If confirmed, Locke would become the third Asian American in Obama's Cabinet, the most any administration has ever had.

Locke served two terms as Washington governor from 1997 to 2005. He declined to seek a third term, saying he wanted to spend more time with his family.

New York, Feb. 24 : A remarkably high level of optimism among Americans about President Obama's leadership has provided him substantial political clout to counter the nation's economic challenges and opposition by nearly all the republicans in the Congress, a survey reveals.