The White House objective is to put lawmakers in a tight spot: Support Obama's jobs package or risk being portrayed as doing nothing to improve the economy heading into presidential and congressional elections in November 2012.

The US economy, the world's largest, is mired in 9.1 percent unemployment and flirting with another recession as Europe's debt woes compound fears over the global outlook. US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner will attend part of a meeting of euro zone finance ministers on September 16 in Poland.

Obama, who pushed through an US$800 billion economic stimulus package in 2009, stepped up his campaign to sell his latest recovery proposals to American voters.

White House budget director Jack Lew outlined Obama's proposals for paying for the plan, targeting the rich and corporations as the president has in the past to no avail.

On September 19, Obama is due to unveil about US$2 trillion in new government savings - presumably spending cuts coupled with tax increases - to help the super committee find at least US$1.2 trillion in deficit reductions.

Obama will take his jobs message on the road again this week to build support for his ideas in battleground states.