Obama vows new ideas to boost jobs

Looking to both inspire disaffected supporters and tap into the momentum that has propelled the Tea Party, President Obama has turned sharply from hoping to change Washington to blaming the city for the nation's stalled economic recovery.

The president's new message, rolled out at both a public event in Michigan and a New York City fundraiser on Thursday, takes direct aim at Congress as the reason the economic recovery has stalled.

Obama came out of one of the darker periods of his administration, the days following the almost universally despised debt deal followed by both a credit-rating downgrade and a tragic turn of events in Afghanistan, unleashing his disgust and declaring "our system is broken.

In what at first appeared to be another of the president's almost routine trips to an advanced battery manufacturer, Obama came out firing, saying that "what we’ve seen in Washington the last few months has been the worst kind of partisanship, the worst kind of gridlock."

"And that gridlock has undermined public confidence and impeded our efforts to take the steps we need for our economy," Obama said. "It’s made things worse instead of better."

The president added what was unmistakably a new economic theme and reelection message: "There is nothing wrong with our country. There is something wrong with our politics."

Obama's new fire came as much of the Republican presidential field made the traditional rounds of Iowa before a debate and Texas Gov. Rick Perry made clear his intentions to get in the race this weekend.

In a passionate speech to auto workers in Michigan, Obama described last week's U.S. credit rating downgrade as "a self-inflicted wound" and said the refusal on Capitol Hill to put country ahead of party was suppressing the economy.

"There are some in Congress right now who would rather see their opponents lose than see America win. And that has to stop," he told a crowd at Johnson Controls, which is ramping up production of car batteries for hybrid and electric vehicles.

Obama's hopes for reelection in 2012 will hinge on his success in lowering unemployment, currently pinned above 9 percent, boosting sluggish growth and restoring confidence lost from the Standard & Poor's downgrade and fractious debt talks.

"I'm going to be putting out more proposals, week by week, that will help businesses hire and put people back to work," he told the Michigan event.

But Obama did not immediately spell out any new initiatives beyond renewing his call for Congress to extend a payroll tax cut, advance trade pacts with South Korea, Panama and Colombia, and deliver patent reform.

The Democratic president has few tools left to stoke growth. Fiscal stimulus efforts during the 2008-2009 recession, including a multibillion-dollar auto industry bailout, have vastly expanded the budget deficit.

Now the United States is under market pressure to slash it or face higher funding costs.

Republicans in Congress -- and on the presidential campaign trail -- also strongly oppose big, new spending programs and are giving the White House little wiggle room to boost hiring through public works programs or business incentives.