As East Coast residents battled the cold and snow, President Obama and Sarah Palin heated up a political debate that will help define this year's congressional elections, and beyond.

Their speeches Saturday had different purposes. Obama tried to buck up Democratic Party members depressed about election reversals; Palin sought to fire up Tea Party activists who are confident of conservative prospects.

"We knew from the beginning that this would not be easy," Obama told the winter meeting of the Democratic National Committee. "Change never is. But that's especially true in these times, when we face an array of challenges as tough as any we have seen in generations."

But if the party follows through on issues such as jobs and health care, Obama added, "we will once again be the party that turns around the economy and moves this country forward, and secures the American Dream for another generation."

Palin, speaking on Fox News Sunday about her appearance at the Tea Party convention in Nashville, said, "we have lost millions and millions and millions of jobs as we have incurred greater and greater debt and deficit, debt that I believe is immoral because we're handing the bill to our children"

She also said, "what's coming from the White House is just a fundamental difference from a lot of conservatives in our belief that government is not the answer." And Palin said she would not "close the door" on the possibility of her own presidential bid in 2012.

The weekend appearances by Obama and Palin featured basic messages that will heard in the months to come.

Obama's message: We took tough actions to save the country from depression, including help for banks that was unfortunate but necessary. The stimulus bill is producing jobs and righting the economy. Now we're looking for long-term fixes, including education, alternative energy sources, and -- yes -- health care reform. We're also tending to national security, while improving foreign relations that collapsed under George W. Bush.

Palin's pitch: Obama is spending money that government doesn't have, at least not without massive tax hikes. His health care, energy, and education plans will only increase the government bureaucracy, at the expense of private enterprise. The health care plan in particular amounts to a government takeover. And Obama is weak on terrorism and national defense.

Here are some highlights from their appearances.

First, Obama on:

His overall approach:

Everything we've done over the past year has been not only to right our economy, to break the back of this recession, but also to restore some of the security middle-class families have felt slipping away for over a decade now.

The Republicans:

Some of the steps we took were done without the help of the other party, which made a political decision all too often to jump in the backseat, let us do the driving and then critique whether we were taking the right turns. That's okay. That's part of what it means to govern.

On Washington:

Folks are out there working hard every day, trying to meet their responsibilities. But all around them during this last, "lost" decade, what they've seen is a wave of irresponsibility from Wall Street to Washington -- they see a capital city where every day is treated like Election Day, and every act, every comment, every gesture passes through a political filter. They've seen the out sized influence of lobbyists and special interests, who too often hijack the agenda by leveraging campaign money and connections.

On reports that he's prepared to accept defeat on health care:

So just in case there's any confusion out there, let me be clear. I am not going to walk away from health insurance reform.

On national security:

We have begun to leave Iraq to its own people. We've charted a new way forward in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and made good progress in taking the fight to al Qaeda across the globe.

And here's Palin (from her Nashville appearance) on:

The Obama agenda:

How's that hope-y, change-y stuff workin' out for you?

The Tea Party movement:

This is about the people, and it's bigger than any one king or queen of a tea party, and it's a lot bigger than any charismatic guy with a teleprompter.

On national security:

Treating this like a mere law enforcement matter places our country at great risk because that's not how radical Islamic extremists are looking at this. They know we're at war, and to win that war we need a commander in chief, not a professor of law standing at the lectern.

Her own future:

My plan is quite simple. To support those who support the foundation of our country when it comes to the economy. It is free market principles that reward hard work and personal responsibility.

On Obama and recent Democratic election losses in Massachusetts, Virginia, and New Jersey:

When you're 0-3 you'd better stop lecturing and start listening.

Other activity on this snowy weekend in Washington:

On NBC's Meet The Press, Obama counter-terrorism adviser John Brennan said he briefed Republican leaders in Congress on Christmas Day about the arrest of bomb plot suspect Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner defended the U.S. bond rating on ABC's This Week.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton told new host Candy Crowley on CNN's State of the Union that the administration's diplomatic engagement has helped rally the world against Iran's nuclear ambitions.

Bob Schieffer of CBS' Face The Nation drew tough duty this Sunday: He traveled to South Florida for the Super Bowl to interview NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.

Enjoy the game, or at least the party. And stay warm.

(Posted by David Jackson)