President Barack Obama and U.S. Senator-elect Marco Rubio

Having routed the Democrats at the polls, the Republicans turned to incoming U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio Saturday to offer the Republican response to President Barack Obama‘s weekly radio address.

The move shows how highly regarded Rubio is by Republican leaders -- a point they made clear Friday when they announced Rubio would be giving the response.

“Senator-elect Rubio embodies an exciting and optimistic message about the future of America," said Republican U.S. Senate Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. "His principled conservatism and focus on leaving a better nation for our children and grandchildren had a powerful impact in Florida and across the country,

“Americans are sending Marco and his fellow senators-elect to Washington with clear marching orders: Stop the big-government freight train and respect the will of the people who sent you there," added McConnell. "Marco’s an excellent choice to deliver the first post-election address.”

Said Rubio, “With Election Day now behind us, it’s an honor to speak directly to the American people about the opportunity before us – an opportunity to put America back on track."

Obama responded to the Republicans taking over the U.S. House of Representatives and closing the gap in the U.S. Senate though still falling short of a majority.

“This week, Americans across the country cast their votes and made their voices heard. And your message was clear,” said Obama. “You’re rightly frustrated with the pace of our economic recovery. So am I. You’re fed up with partisan politics and want results. I do too.

“But now, the campaign season is over,” continued Obama  “And it’s time to focus on our shared responsibilities to work together and deliver those results: speeding up our economic recovery, creating jobs, and strengthening the middle class so that the American Dream feels like it’s back within reach.”

Obama called for leaders in both parties to work together and indicated that he was open to extending tax cuts backed by President George W. Bush in 2001 and 2003 for Americans making less than $250,000 annually.

“Here’s why this lame-duck session is so important,” said Obama. “Early in the last decade, President Bush and Congress enacted a series of tax cuts that were designed to expire at the end of this year. What that means is, if Congress doesn’t act by New Year’s Eve, middle-class families will see their taxes go up starting on New Year’s Day.

“But the last thing we should do is raise taxes on middle-class families,” continued Obama. “For the past decade, they saw their costs rise, their incomes fall, and too many jobs go overseas. They’re the ones bearing the brunt of the recession. They’re the ones having trouble making ends meet. They are the ones who need relief right now. So, something’s got to be done. And I believe there’s room for us to compromise and get it done together.”

But while Obama called for compromise, he dug in his heels about extending the tax cuts for all Americans.

“At a time when we are going to ask folks across the board to make such difficult sacrifices, I don’t see how we can afford to borrow an additional $700 billion from other countries to make all the Bush tax cuts permanent, even for the wealthiest 2 percent of Americans,” said the president. “We’d be digging ourselves into an even deeper fiscal hole and passing the burden on to our children.

“I recognize that both parties are going to have to work together and compromise to get something done here,” continued Obama. “But I want to make my priorities clear from the start. One: Middle-class families need permanent tax relief. And two: I believe we can’t afford to borrow and spend another $700 billion on permanent tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires.