U.S. President Barack Obama walked a rhetorical tight rope during a crucial address to Congress Tuesday night, balancing the dire economic predicament of a troubled country with a clarion call for its citizens to pull together through determined and swift action.

Though Obama's speech marked his debut in front of a joint session of Congress, the new president also spoke directly to anxious Americans confronting a deepening economic crisis.

"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, and the United States of America will emerge stronger than before," Obama said.

In sharp contrast to the soaring campaign speeches Obama made during his historic run for the presidency, Tuesday's speech delivered sobering content in sometimes blunt language.

"The fact is, our economy did not fall into decline overnight," he said, referring to over-extended mortgages and deregulation on Wall Street.

"And all the while, critical debates and difficult decisions were put off for some other time on some other day. Well that day of reckoning has arrived, and the time to take charge of our future is here."

Along with providing Americans -- and citizens of the world -- with a detailed update on his unprecedented, US$787-billion stimulus package, Obama also spelled out his administration's goals of greening the U.S. economy, growing health care coverage and slashing U.S. debt.

"The answers to our problems don't lie beyond our reach. They exist in our laboratories and universities, in our fields and our factories, in the imaginations of our entrepreneurs and the pride of the hardest-working people on Earth," said Obama.

"What is required now is for this country to pull together, confront boldly the challenges we face and take responsibility for our future once more."

The speech, which took on the flavour of a state of the union address, came only five weeks after Obama took office amid a grand inaugural celebration punctuated by hope about a new political era.

While other presidents, like George W. Bush, have used the joint congressional speech as a platform for important foreign policy issues, Obama's words focused on the economy.

Obama also stressed the importance of the financial bailout as Washington aims to thaw stiff credit markets which have impeded the economy from recovering.

"The concern is that if we do not re-start lending in this country, our recovery will be choked off before it even begins," Obama said.

"You see, the flow of credit is the lifeblood of our economy. The ability to get a loan is how you finance the purchase of everything from a home to a car to a college education," said Obama, speaking directly to Americans tuning in on television.

"That's what this is about. It's not about helping banks -- it's about helping people. "

Green energy, education and health

While the economy took centre stage in Obama's speech, he was clear that greening energy in the U.S. and diminishing the nation's dependence on foreign energy sources like oil is key to long-term prosperity.

"We know the country that harnesses the power of clean, renewable energy will lead the 21st century," said Obama.

However, he said that China, Japan and Germany are outpacing the U.S. in terms of developing renewable energy sources.

In order to catch up, Obama said that his administration will aim to double the nation's supply of renewable energy sources in only three years.

"We will soon lay down thousands of miles of power lines that can carry new energy to cities and towns across this country. And we will put Americans to work making our homes and buildings more efficient so that we can save billions of dollars on our energy bills."

Later in the speech, Obama said that his administration has done more in 30 days to reform the nation's healthcare system than in the previous decade.

He also pledged to slash inefficiencies and invest in cancer research.

Along with health reform, Obama promised to bolster education at a time when barely half of the country has a high school diploma.

"This is a prescription for economic decline because we know the countries that out teach us today will out compete us tomorrow," he said.

Obama didn't stop at making government promises: he also called on Americans to improve their own education standards and to make learning a greater priority in their own lives.

"And so tonight, I ask every American to commit to at least one year or more of higher education or career training," he said.

Republicans respond

Republican Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal delivered the GOP's televised response shortly after Obama's speech, and called on his party to support the new president on issues where common ground is possible.

But he said the two parties sometimes "look for hope in different places," and called Obama's stimulus package "irresponsible" and excessive.

"The way to lead is not to raise taxes and put more money and power in hands of Washington politicians," Jindal said.

A recent New York Times/CBS News poll suggested roughly 75 per cent of Americans believe Obama has tried to be bipartisan in tackling the economic crisis. Nearly as many said they felt the Republicans had opposed the stimulus package for purely political reasons.

CTV's Paul Workman, reporting from Washington, D.C., said the Republicans must be careful because of the popularity of the president.

"(Obama is) using almost wartime language, saying if you don't get behind this measure, then you're risking the health of the mission," he told CTV News.

Despite the growing partisan rift over the economic recovery package, Wall Street rallied on Tuesday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernake predicted that the recession could end within a year.

With files from The Associated Press