Obama's Dilema

When President Obama takes to the airwaves Monday evening to rally support for his $800 billion-plus stimulus plan, he'll find himself in the tricky position of simultaneously needing to inspire confidence in the long-term strength of the economy while also dramatizing the current crisis as so dire that immediate action by Congress is necessary.

It's part of a White House publicity blitz to sell his strategy to the public, and it'll be in press conference format so the president can defend criticism of his plan rather than just laying out the details.

Earlier Monday, the president made a targeted pitch at a town hall meeting in Elkhart, Ind., where unemployment reached 15.3% in December. Tuesday, Obama takes the same message on the road to Florida. Meanwhile, Congress is struggling to come up with a bill to send to the president's desk.

Lately, he's done little to balance these competing positions. In Indiana Monday, Obama warned that delay would mean that "millions of jobs will be lost, and national unemployment rates will approach double digits," also adding that no matter what is done "recovery will likely be measured in years, not weeks or months."

It wasn't exactly a fireside chat. Don't expect one tonight, either. Here's what you're likely to see in Monday's press conference:

The selling points

Expect Obama's remarks Monday to be directed at individuals, just as they were during his Indiana speech. He'll point out that the plan will provide extended unemployment benefits, tax credits of up to $1,000 for families, partially refundable student tax credits and that more than 90% of the jobs created will be in the private sector.