'First of all, we need a rescue plan for the middle class'

Finally, as we monitor and address these immediate economic challenges, we will be moving forward in laying out a set of policies that will grow our middle class and strengthen our economy in the long term. We cannot afford to wait on moving forward on the key priorities that I identified during the campaign, including clean energy, healthcare, education and tax relief for middle-class families.

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On dealing with Iran and answering the congratulatory letter Obama received:

Iran's development of a nuclear weapon, I believe, is unacceptable. And we have to mount an international effort to prevent that from happening.

Iran's support of terrorist organizations, I think, is something that has to cease.

I will be reviewing the letter from President [Mahmoud] Ahmadinejad, and we will respond appropriately. It's only been three days since the election.

Obviously, how we approach and deal with a country like Iran is not something that we should, you know, simply do in a knee-jerk fashion. I think we've got to think it through.

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On filling Cabinet posts:

When we have an announcement about Cabinet appointments, we will make them. . . . I'm confident that we're going to have an outstanding team, and we will be rolling that out in subsequent weeks.

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On getting a puppy:

We have two criteria that have to be reconciled. One is that Malia [Obama's daughter] is allergic, so it has to be hypoallergenic. There are a number of breeds that are hypoallergenic.

On the other hand, our preference would be to get a shelter dog, but, obviously, a lot of shelter dogs are mutts, like me. So -- so whether we're going to be able to balance those two things, I think, is a pressing issue on the Obama household.

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On increasing taxes on upper-income Americans:

I think that the plan that we've put forward is the right one, but, obviously, over the next several weeks and months, we're going to be continuing to take a look at the data and see what's taking place in the economy as a whole.

But, understand, the goal of my plan is to provide tax relief to families that are struggling, but also to boost the capacity of the economy to grow from the bottom up.