UPDATE 6-Obama vows to tackle jobs challenge head-on

UPDATE 6-Obama vows to tackle jobs challenge head-on





Obama says cannot "wait and see" for jobs

* Says U.S. resources limited, cheap ugg ideas must be responsible

* Government seeks private sector aid (Adds more Obama remarks, Republican reaction)

By Alister Bull

WASHINGTON, Dec 3 (Reuters) - President Barack Obama urged corporate America on Thursday to help tackle the nation's highest unemployment in 26 years but also hinted at federal tax credits and aid to states to ease jobless woes.

"There's no question that it is difficult out there right now, but we also heard some exciting ideas and proposals for how we can spur hiring," he told business and labor leaders summoned to a White House job creation brainstorming forum.

Obama hosted the event, which critics dismissed as a publicity stunt, after U.S. unemployment hit a 26-year high of 10.2 percent in October, chipping away at his popularity and potentially shaping his political future.

"Despite the progress we've made, many businesses are cheap ugg still skittish about hiring," he said, acknowledging that although growth had resumed, the labor market was lagging behind.

November's unemployment report is cheap ugg due on Friday and a Reuters poll of analysts expect the rate to show no change.

The numbers will provide a sobering backdrop for Obama as he takes his message to Allentown, Pennsylvania, capping a crucial week for the president who also announced a major escalation in the Afghan war.

Allentown, which Obama said was the kind of place "where the rubber hits the road" in the struggles of a weak economy, is the first stop on a "White House to Main Street" tour the president will make to try to reassure Americans.

He will also deliver a speech about the economy on cheap ugg Tuesday at the Brookings Institution think tank in Washington, as his administration weighs its options to lift employment.

Economic anxiety as the country struggles out of the worst recession in 70 years could hurt his Democratic Party in next November congressional elections, and dim Obama's own prospects for a second term in office.

Recent opinion polls show his approval ratings have slipped to about 50 percent, partly because of the economy.

"This White House 'jobs summit' is just another example of President Obama's PR presidency, where he stages photo-ops and events to distract citizens and the media from his cheap uggadministration's failures," said Michael Steele, chairman of the Republican National Committee.