US president to pitch trio of economic proposals in Ohio

The White House said the package of infrastructure investments and business tax incentives Obama was to outline during a speech in Cleveland is meant to put the economy on a path toward long-term growth while also allowing for some immediate job creation.

But with Washington's already heated partisanship likely to escalate as the midterm elections approach, it's uncertain whether Congress could pass any of the incentives in time to help the economy — and Democrats — before November.

Obama is asking Congress to consider three proposals:

— US$50 billion infrastructure investment to rebuild and repair the nation's roads, railways and runways.

— A permanent extension of research and development tax credits for businesses.

— Tax breaks to let businesses quickly write off 100 percent of their spending on new plants and equipment through 2011.

Senior administration officials said the three proposals would be the full extent of new economic policies the president would announce before the midterms, eliminating the possibility of a pre-election freeze on payroll taxes, an idea supported by many businesses.

The officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to preview the president's speech, said Obama would draw a contrast between his economic proposals and those of the GOP, going so far as to give his remarks in the same city where House Minority Leader John Boehner outlined the Republican economic agenda last month.

Mindful of the public's anger over the mounting federal deficit, the White House has carefully avoided calling the new economic proposals a stimulus plan, like the US$814 billion economic package Congress passed last year.

Even with fresh proposals in hand, officials said the president would continue to prod the Senate to pass a bill that calls for about US$12 billion in tax breaks for small businesses and a US$30 billion fund to help unfreeze small business lending. Republicans have likened the bill to the unpopular bailout of the financial industry.

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