Obama reassures Americans of future

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US President Barack Obama speaks during a prime time news conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington, March 24, 2009. [Agencies]

But Obama repeated his pledge that the plan will cut the deficit in half by the end of his first term in 2011.

Barack Obama, US President, said, "The best way to bring our deficit down in the long run is not with a budget that continues the very same policies that have lead us to a narrow prosperity and massive debt. It's with a budget that leads to broad economic growth by moving from an era of borrow and spend to one where we save and invest. This budget is inseparable from this recovery, because it is what lays the foundation for a secure and lasting prosperity."

Obama also touched on international issues.

On the Middle East peace process, he said even if a hard-line government takes shape in Israel, there is still hope for peace.

Obama said his choice of George Mitchell as Middle East envoy was a signal that the US government is serious about trying to move the parties toward that goal.