Obama: 'We Just Can't Afford a Politically Self-Inflicted Wound to Our Economy'

During his Saturday weekly radio address, President Barack Obama said “we just can’t afford a politically self-inflicted wound to our economy.”

For that reason, explained Mr. Obama, Congress should pass a bill to avert going over the fiscal cliff:

In just a couple days, the law says that every American’s tax rates are going up. Every American’s paycheck will get a lot smaller. And that would be the wrong thing to do for our economy. It would hurt middle-class families, and it would hurt the businesses that depend on your spending. 

If an agreement isn’t struck before the final hour, Mr. Obama says he’ll call upon the Senate to have an up-or-down vote on a “basic package” that would keep the Bush tax cuts for middle income Americans, extend unemployment insurance, and lay the “groundwork for future progress on more economic growth and deficit reduction.”

You meet your deadlines and your responsibilities every day. The folks you sent here to serve should do the same. We cannot let Washington politics get in the way of America’s progress. We’ve got to do what it takes to protect the middle class, grow this economy, and move our country forward.

Mr. Obama said Friday that, “America wonders why it is in this town why you can’t get stuff done in an organized timetable, why everything has to wait until the last minute. We’re now at the last minute.”

On Sunday, Mr. Obama is set to appear on NBC’s Meet The Press with David Gregory.