Sept. 24 (Bloomberg) -- President George W. Bush, in aprime time...

Sept. 24 (Bloomberg) -- President George W. Bush, in a
prime time address to the nation, said the unprecedented
intervention his administration has proposed to stabilize U.S.
financial markets is urgently needed to avoid the prospect of a
``long and painful recession.''
``We're in the midst of a serious financial crisis,'' Bush
said in a speech from the White House. ``Our entire economy is
in danger.''
Bush addressed the nation after he invited presidential
candidates John McCain and Barack Obama and a bipartisan group
of House and Senate leaders to the White House tomorrow to
hasten an agreement on the bailout package.
The invitation came after Federal Reserve chairman Ben
Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson faced another day
of questioning on the plan from skeptical lawmakers.
Bush explained the crisis, recounting how easier credit
brought on ``negative consequences'' in the economy, including
people getting home mortgages they couldn't afford. The decline
in the housing market ``set off a domino effect'' throughout the
economy, he said.
``The gears in the financial system began grinding to a
halt,'' Bush said.
Resistance in Congress has led the administration to
retreat on its opposition to limits on executive compensation
for companies taking part in the rescue plan and for more
oversight of the plan's implementation.