"The taxpayer gets something back for their guarantee of the mortgage; the lender gets something back for having taken a haircut . . . and the [homeowner] gives up something, which is some increase in the value of the house," said Douglas Holtz-Eakin, a McCain economics advisor. "You've got to sacrifice to get some help."
McCain offered tepid support for the bipartisan homeowners-relief measures moving through Congress, but Holtz-Eakin said McCain found many aspects of the legislation "disappointing."
On Thursday, the Senate approved its effort to address the nation's housing crisis, setting the stage for negotiations with the House.
Obama criticized McCain's plan while campaigning in Gary, Ind. Although he called the proposal "better late than never," Obama added: "Sen. McCain's solution to the housing crisis seems a lot like the George Bush solution of sitting by and hoping it passes while families face foreclosure and watch the value of their homes erode."
Clinton, in a prepared statement, chided McCain on Thursday for pivoting from the more laissez-faire approach to the housing crisis he outlined during an appearance in Santa Ana two weeks ago.
"Now he's changed positions and is finally responding to a housing crisis that has been going on for months, but unfortunately his actions are only half-measures," she said.
McCain unveiled his plan at Windows We Are Inc., located down the street from the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge.
He was introduced by New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, who reminisced about McCain campaigning with him when he first ran for mayor, in 2001.
Bloomberg also recalled a visit several years ago to McCain's retreat outside Sedona, Ariz. He joked that the home and surrounding property were "relatively small" to be called a ranch and recalled that McCain's trademark ribs, which he grills himself, "were slightly on the well-done side." But Bloomberg said he "loved them anyways."
McCain, before leaving Brooklyn, also found time for a food adventure, stopping at a nearby pizzeria.
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maeve.reston@latimes.com
Times staff writer Sarah Wire in Washington contributed to this report.
