Obama Economic Policy Speech

Obama gave a "major economic policy address" today in Janesville, Wisconsin. The speech doesn't lay out any major new material that I can see, but it's a good reference for the basic Obama economic policy program.

In separate remarks in Waukesha, Wisconsin, Obama took some shots at McCain on economic policy:

It turns out that yesterday, or maybe today, John McCain started attacking me on economic policy, which I thought was flattering. It makes clear that he knows who his opponent is going to be, and I am looking forward to a great debate on the issues with John McCain.

I have to say, though, that I was surprised that he took me on on economics because he has admitted—and by the way John McCain is a great American hero, a war hero we honor his service. But economics is not his strong suit. I mean he said, "I don’t understand economics very well," and after what he said, it shows, because his main economic philosophy is to continue the same tax breaks that George Bush has been perpetuating over the last seven years and that...John McCain criticized as irresponsible back when he wasn’t running for President

...Somewhere along the line he traded those principles for his party’s nomination and now he is for those tax cuts. So I just want to make everybody clear I am not....

So George Bush may not be on the ballot this fall, but his tax cuts and his economic policies are. And if John McCain wants to debate the specifics of how well the economy has worked for ordinary families over the last seven years, that is a debate that I am happy to have, because the American people know that Bush’s policies have not worked for ordinary Americans.

It's good to see him hammering away at McCain's confession that he doesn't understand economics. I expect this will become a staple for the campaign.