U.S. President Barack Obama is celebrating the resurgence of the "Big Three" automakers - Ford, GM and Chrysler.

During Saturday's weekly address recorded at a Chrysler plant in Toledo, Ohio, Obama said Chrysler and GM are all adding jobs since his administration stepped in with a taxpayer financed bailout.

The president says Chrysler has repaid its loan six years ahead of schedule.

Obama also says the government this week reached a deal to sell its stake in Chrysler, meaning the company will be returning to all private ownership.

Ford has also recovered from the recession and is adding jobs.  Its turnaround came without a government bailout.

In the Republican address, Tennessee Senator Lamar Alexander criticized Obama administration efforts of keeping jobs in the country.

Senator Alexander blamed the National Labor Relations Board and unions for making it more difficult to create private sector jobs in the United States.