U.S. President Barack Obama said on Saturday the newly passed 787 billion dollar stimulus plan was a "major milestone on our road to recovery."

"This historic step won't be the end of what we do to turn our economy around, but the beginning," Obama said in his weekly radio and Internet address.

"I will sign this legislation into law shortly, and we'll begin making the immediate investments necessary to put people back to work doing the work America needs done," he said.

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (C) speaks during the news conference right after the House passed the 789-billion-dollar stimulus package on the Capitol Hill in Washington on Feb, 13, 2009.

Obama has scored a significant victory as the Congress on Friday finally approved his massive stimulus package, an unprecedented attempt to jump-start the ailing American economy.

The 787 billion dollar package was approved by a vote of 246-183 in the House of Representatives but with no Republican support. Hours later, the bill advanced in the Senate by a vote of60-36. Three centrist Republicans joined Democrats to move the legislation forward.

Obama thanked the Congress for the swift actions. "Congress has passed my economic recovery plan an ambitious plan at a time we badly need it," he said.

"It will save or create more than 3.5 million jobs over the next two years, ignite spending by business and consumers alike, and lay a new foundation for our lasting economic growth and prosperity," he said.

At the same time, he also warned, "the problems that led us into this crisis are deep and widespread. Our response must be equal to the task."

"Our debt has doubled over the past eight years, and we've inherited a trillion-dollar deficit which we must add to in the short term in order to jump-start our sick economy," he said.

But Obama expressed his confidence that the U.S. could work through the economic crisis.

"It will take time, and it will take effort, but working together, we will turn this crisis into opportunity and emerge from our painful present into a brighter future," he said.

In addition to roughly 286 billion dollars in tax cuts and 54 billion dollars for cash-strapped states, the package contains 311billion dollars in appropriations, including 120 billion dollars in infrastructure, 14.2 billion dollars for health care, 105.9 billion dollars for education and training.

It also includes more than 37.5 billion dollars for energy infrastructure, 24.3 billion dollars for those impacted by the economic crisis and 7.8 billion dollars for law enforcement and other programs.

Many economists across the political spectrum believe the massive bill might reduce the damages caused by the current economic crisis, but could not quickly pull the U.S. economy out of its downward spiral.

What's more, the controversial "Buy American" provisions of the package, which prohibit the purchase of foreign iron, steel and manufactured goods for any stimulus-funded infrastructure projects, also incurred criticism of smacking of trade protectionism.