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Following the better-than-expected December jobs report, President Obama said the country is "headed in the right direction" and vowed not to "let up" when it comes to growing the economy.

"This year, I'm going to keep doing whatever it takes to move this economy forward and to make sure that middle class families regain the security they've lost over the past decade. That's my new year's resolution to all of you," the president said in his weekly address.

The declaration came just days after Obama defiantly bypassed Senate Republicans to install Richard Cordray as the nation's top consumer watchdog.

"I nominated Richard for this job last summer. And yet, Republicans in the Senate kept blocking his confirmation - not because they objected to him, but because they wanted to weaken his agency. That made no sense. Every day we waited was a day you and consumers all across the country were at greater financial risk," Obama said.

The president announced that next Wednesday the White House will host a "Insourcing American Jobs" forum where he will "hear from business leaders who are bringing jobs back home and see how we can help other businesses follow their lead.

"Because this is a make-or-break moment for the middle class and all those working to get there, we've got to keep at it," he said. "We've got to keep creating jobs. And we've got to keep rebuilding our economy so that everyone gets a fair shot, everyone does their fair share - and everyone plays by the same rules."