By Ross Colvin and Matt Spetalnick
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama said on Friday he expected an $825 billion (607 billion pound) stimulus package for the ailing U.S. economy to be approved by his target of mid-February and personally urged congressional leaders to work swiftly to pass it.
"We are experiencing an unprecedented economic crisis that has to be dealt with and dealt with rapidly," Obama told reporters before meeting with the lawmakers at the White House.
With new figures showing the U.S. economy sinking deeper into recession, Obama is anxious to win bipartisan support for the package to jolt the economy out of its worst crisis since the Great Depression.
Republicans have voiced concern over the shape of the package and accused Obama's fellow Democrats, who hold a majority in Congress, of failing to take their views into account.
Winning Republican support for the package will be an early test of Obama's promise to forge consensus and overcome the partisan politics that bitterly divided Washington under his Republican predecessor George W. Bush.
"I recognise that there are still some difference around the table and between the administration and members of Congress about particular details on the plan," Obama said.
But he added, "It appears that we are on target to make our Presidents Day weekend (goal for the stimulus plan)."
Republicans are upset at how the Obama administration plans to spend the stimulus money, saying the $550 billion in government spending would add too much to the deficit and that the $275 billion earmarked for tax cuts is too little.
Obama says his plan aims to create or save 3 to 4 million jobs in the U.S. economy, which has been in a yearlong recession since the collapse of the housing market sparked a global panic over bank losses that in turn froze credit markets.
Among those who attended the White House meeting were House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority leader Harry Reid, as well as Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell and House Republican leader John Boehner.
Wall Street was scrutinizing the outcome of the meeting for signs that the stimulus package will be passed soon.
Worries over potential delays have helped push stocks lower. Major U.S. indexes were down amid worries over corporate profits and concerns that the global economic slowdown shows no signs of ending.
The new president has said that rescuing the U.S. economy is his No. 1 priority, and analysts say that, for now, his first term was likely to be judged on his ability to restore economic and financial stability.
DAILY ECONOMIC BRIEFING
In a change from Bush, Obama has added an economic briefing to his daily schedule so that he can get the latest information on the state of the economy.
He was due to receive the briefing from his top economic adviser, Larry Summers, later on Friday before meeting his nominee for Treasury secretary Timothy Geithner.
Geithner said earlier this week that in the coming weeks the Obama administration would unveil a multi-pronged effort to stabilise the housing market, strengthen core banks and support consumer credit.
The Senate Finance Committee voted on Thursday to approve Geithner despite initial controversy over the disclosure that he had failed to pay some U.S. taxes while working at the International Monetary Fund.
Underscoring the challenges facing Obama and his economic team, new government figures on Thursday showed that the number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless benefits rose by a more-than-expected 62,000 last week to 589,000.
Compounding the gloomy economic news, Microsoft stunned Wall Street by announcing it was planning to lay off 5,000 workers in its biggest-ever job cut.
Several hundred financial institutions have received cash injections under a $350 billion government-backed bank rescue plan. U.S. lawmakers have agreed to release an additional $350 billion to restore financial stability.
(Writing by Ross Colvin; Editing by David Storey)
