In Ohio, Biden Defends Stimulus Package

Vice President Fires Back at GOP and Critics

CINCINNATI, July 9 -- In a campaign-style speech designed to seize the initiative from Republican critics and reassure voters that the White House has a plan to rescue the lagging economy, Vice President Biden forcefully defended the administration's economic recovery package on Thursday and asked for patience.

Biden said money from the $787 billion stimulus bill is flowing and will flow faster, directly saving public service jobs. He urged Americans to recognize the severity of the administration's inherited problems and promised, "You're going to see more pace on the ball."

"Remember, we're only 140 days into this deal. It's supposed to take 18 months," Biden said during his appearance in a pivotal electoral battleground state where unemployment has reached 10.8 percent and support for President Obama's handling of the economy has fallen below 50 percent in some polls.

Referring to the Republicans who have upped their attacks on the stimulus package in hopes of turning next year's midterm elections into a referendum on Democratic economic policy, Biden asked: "Would they do nothing?"

The aggressive tone and tempo of his speech came at a moment when the Obama administration is facing sustained criticism from the GOP amid worries that the recovery may stall. It also came near the end of a rough week for Biden, who said Sunday that the administration "misread the economy," only to have Obama publicly disagree with him.

National polls show Obama's approval rating slipping, although still above 50 percent. The Gallup poll's daily tracking put the number at 56 percent on Wednesday, down from 63 percent in late June.

In Northside, a working-class neighborhood where Biden spoke outside a gutted factory that is scheduled to be transformed into housing, residents said they have seen little benefit from the stimulus package, which remains about 85 percent unspent.

Yet they were divided on Obama's handling of the economy, with many willing to heed Biden and give the administration time for the legislation and other measures to work.

"It takes a long time. He's not a miracle worker," Lon King, a landscaper whose business is down 20 percent from 2007, said as he sat in his pickup truck, finishing lunch. "Who's got the figures on how bad the numbers would have been without the stimulus package?"

Shenika Hales, a store clerk and college student, said she has heard former Obama supporters "nailing him" for not turning around the economy. She does not agree with them, but she understands.

"It's kind of gradually getting better, but it's still kind of shaky," she said of the local economy as she retrieved a load of laundry from a coin-operated washer. "It can't come as fast as people would want it."

The past several weeks have provided some of the toughest news for Obama since he took office in January. The national unemployment rate rose a tenth of a point, to 9.5 percent -- higher than the White House had projected -- and Republicans have increased their attacks.