MEDIA, PA. — With Congress considering a bailout plan for Wall Street, John McCain cast Barack Obama as indecisive in the face of the financial crisis, accusing him of resorting to partisan attacks rather than proposing concrete ideas for stabilizing the economy.
"Today, instead of offering a single solution, he just gave a political speech full of political attacks," McCain said here Monday. "One week after this crisis began, Sen. Obama has still not offered any plan of any kind."
McCain issued the outlines of a possible approach Friday, five days after the crisis erupted. That followed an awkward period for McCain, who has made conflicting statements about whether the government should bail out major financial institutions.
In Green Bay, Wis., Obama steered clear of a detailed critique of the Bush administration's bailout proposal, but called for more vigorous oversight of the financial markets to restore public confidence in Washington and Wall Street.
Speaking before 6,000 people at a sports arena, Obama said, "We cannot give a blank check to Washington with no oversight and accountability when no oversight and accountability is what got us into this mess in the first place."
As the stock market swings wildly, the financial crisis poses challenges for both candidates. McCain, the Republican nominee, is recommending tighter regulations, a position at variance with his record as an ardent free-market enthusiast. A CNN poll released Monday showed that, by a 2-1 margin, voters blame Republicans for the mayhem. And Obama, if he deliberates too long before offering specifics, could feed McCain's critique that he is afraid to make a tough decision.
McCain voiced reservations about the Bush administration's plan at a town hall in Scranton, Pa., saying he was "deeply uncomfortable" with it because the secretary of the Treasury would have virtually unbridled authority to determine which companies are eligible and under what circumstances. "Never before in the history of our nation has so much power and money been concentrated in the hands of one person," he said.
Later in Media, McCain was joined by Sarah Palin, his running mate, whose presence was a crowd pleaser. Compared with the polite applause McCain drew in Scranton, the crowd squealed and cheered for Palin, chanting "Sa-rah! Sa-rah!" while she grinned and waved from the stage. Only when the cheers died down did the chants of pro-Obama supporters, kept in the distance, echo across the plaza.
