Sen. Arlen Specter says the nation is on the "brink of a depression," but that there's a reasonable chance that the economic stimulus package will help ease the situation.

The Pennsylvania Republican told reporters at the state Capitol in Harrisburg on Monday that the nation faces enormous economic problems that are more serious than the public has been told, although he didn't elaborate.

Specter said he believes that, if the legislation hadn't passed, the nation would have gone "right off the edge."