Obama: U.S. to survive economic "day of reckoning"

By Matt Spetalnick

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama sought to strike a delicate balance between hope and reality on Tuesday to reassure Americans mired in economic crisis that they would survive a "day of reckoning."

Riding high in opinion polls as he delivered his first address to a joint session of Congress, Obama was careful to include a sober assessment of the grim economic situation and his efforts to fix it.

But the politician whose memoir was called "The Audacity of Hope" and who won the White House in last November's election amid chants of "yes, we can" was also back in stride, telling recession-weary Americans they can expect better days ahead.

"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," Obama, a Democrat, said in a televised speech five weeks after taking office.

"And the United States of America will emerge stronger than before," he said to loud applause in the packed chamber. Obama was interrupted by applause more than 60 times as he addressed Congress, where Democrats control both chambers.

His primetime address came against a backdrop of growing anxiety across the country in the face of the worst financial meltdown in decades. While his public support is strong, Wall Street remains skeptical of his economic remedies.

Jittery investors sent U.S. stocks to a 12-year low on Monday, but the markets rallied on Tuesday on Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's assurances that the country's troubled banks should be able to weather the downturn without being nationalized.

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