Jan. 10 (Bloomberg) — President Barack Obama has taken control of the economic debate.

After spending much of the past three years parrying Republican deficit-reduction demands, Obama now has leading members of the opposition party reacting to his policy thrusts.

A 52 percent decline in the federal budget deficit since 2009 has quieted austerity talk and left the traditional Democratic theme of income inequality atop the political agenda. The latest sign: yesterday's dueling anti-poverty speeches by the president and Representative Paul Ryan, a Wisconsin Republican and chairman of the House Budget Committee.

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