President Barack Obama lashed out at Wall Street, calling bankers "fat cats" who don’t get it, in an escalation of tensions with the industry.

Fat Cats after meeting with Obama

Mr. Obama, speaking on the eve of Monday’s meeting with the heads of major banks at the White House, said he would try to persuade bankers to free up more credit to businesses, with the aim of boosting job growth. But the president also expressed frustration with banks that the government has assisted.

"I did not run for office to be helping out a bunch of fat cat bankers on Wall Street," Mr. Obama said in an interview on CBS’s "60 Minutes" program on Sunday.

"They’re still puzzled why is it that people are mad at the banks. Well, let’s see," he said. "You guys are drawing down $10, $20 million bonuses after America went through the worst economic year that it’s gone through in — in decades, and you guys caused the problem. And we’ve got 10% unemployment.

Read more: By ELIZABETH WILLIAMSON, Wall Street Journal