U.S. President Barack Obama said he expects more banks to fail before the troubled U.S. financial system stabilizes.
In a television interview with NBC-TV broadcast Monday, Mr. Obama said it is likely that banks have not acknowledged all the losses they will experience. He said some banks, in his words, "won't make it."
The president also said he has asked Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to set clear guidelines for financial institutions that receive assistance from the federal government. Last week, Mr. Obama criticized companies that paid big bonuses to their executives while they were asking for federal aid.
The president also is continuing to urge lawmakers to pass an economic stimulus bill designed to create jobs. The Senate Monday begins debate on the measure, which calls for about $820 billion in new spending and tax cuts.
A version of the bill was approved in the House of Representatives last week, without a single Republican voting for it.
Republicans also have warned that they will not vote for the Senate version unless it is revised to include more tax cuts and changes to how the money is spent.
The U.S. economy - the world's biggest - is in a recession. The country lost 2.6 million jobs last year and already has seen tens of thousands more layoffs this year.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.
