From The Road
September 22, 2008 12:18 PM

McCain: Obama Has "Not Provided" Leadership on Economic Crisis

By
John Bentley
Topics
John McCain
(CBS)
From CBS News' John Bentley:

(SCRANTON, PA.) – Calling for more oversight and accountability in the government's Wall Street bailout plan, John McCain accused Barack Obama of being absent on the issue of the financial meltdown.

"Sen. Obama has declined to put forth a plan of his own. At a time of crisis when leadership is leaded, Sen. Obama has simply not provided it," McCain said. "The truth is we don't have time to wait for Sen. Obama's input for our nation to act."

The Obama campaign responded that McCain's plan would not help the current situation.

"Sen. McCain's first response to this crisis was to say that 'the fundamentals of our economy are strong,' then he admitted it was a crisis, and then he proposed a 'commission,' which is just Washington-speak for 'I'll get back to you later,'" said Obama spokesman Tommy Vietor.

"Sen. Obama outlined his action plan last week, which included immediate action on housing, on stimulus and financial market reform. And on Friday he presented a clear framework for action on addressing our urgent financial crisis."

McCain also unveiled his plan last week, where he identified his priorities as "keeping people in their homes and safeguarding the life savings of all Americans by protecting our financial system and capital markets."

He also said he was "greatly concerned" about the government's bailout plan because it gives Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson the ability to spend $1 trillion of taxpayer's money.

"Never before in the history of our nation has so much power and money been concentrated in the hands of one person. This arrangement makes me deeply uncomfortable. When we are talking about a trillion dollars of taxpayer money 'trust me' just isn't good enough," McCain said.

"We will not solve a problem caused by poor oversight with a plan that has no oversight. Part of the reason we are facing this crisis is an antiquated regulatory system of uncoordinated agencies that haven't been doing the job."

Add a Comment See all 12 Comments
by obamabiden September 23, 2008 12:23 AM EDT
In a few weeks we will make a choice that will decide our future. I follow an economist named Bob Proctor who has called the top and bottom of every market crash since the 70s correctly. He perfectly predicted the current real estate market meltdown, and the picture he paints about what will happen in the next couple years is terrifying. He thinks it could get worse then the great depression. Country wide the largest mortgage bank in the world Bear Stearns, Lehman brothers, and Merrill Lynch which are 3 out of the top 5 Wall Street firms, and now Fanny and Freddy which hold 50 percent of the home loans in the United States. The government took them over because they are essentially bankrupt. Lehman, Merrill Lynch, and Bear Sterns have survived for over 150 years. Bush just like McCain doesn''''t understand the economy, thats not just my opinion it''s his own words. The people that make up these securities use complex math models very few people understand. They are basically bundles of thousand of loans some good and some bad that are then given rules based on complex math. MSN money, Elliot wave and, Bloomberg have many articles. So why are the poll''s even close? The chairman of McCain''s campaign recently said that people don''''t vote on issues they vote on a personality composite, he is trying to sell personality instead of results. Lets teach him we are smarter then that and elect the ticket that can bring us back from the brink of a economic abyss. obama08
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by truthfairy1 September 22, 2008 8:24 PM EDT
John McCain first responded like a panicked deer in headlights, made the unfortunate comment, "fundamentals of the economy are strong", called for a 9/11 Commission.... then postured with a big speech, written by someone else and delivered from a teleprompter to make him look %u201CPresidential%u201D. Then launched his attack ad saying because Obama didn%u2019t do as he did, he%u2019s not a leader. Obama is calm, reflective, intelligent, doesn%u2019t shoot from the hip. He gave calming assurance, demonstrated he understood the situation and told voters he would meet with his cabinet and wait to see what Bush administration would propose, then respond. And he did. Any strategy either candidate immediately proposed wouldn%u2019t get implemented anyway - - Bush is still Pres.
McCain is the impulsive, hotheaded, act first-think next type. Not best leader credentials. Worse, McCain has shown he cannot be trusted. Like Bush and Cheney, he easily lies to American voters. That character trait disqualifies him as a leader.
In today''s NY Times - former execs of Fannie & Freddie, incensed by McCain%u2019s false attack ad re Obama%u2019s association with them, came forward to reveal that Rick Davis, McCain%u2019s campaign manager, earned $2,000,000 as their lobbyist %u201Cto defend them against stricter regulations%u201D and because of %u201Chis closeness to John McCain
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by dburfears September 22, 2008 6:46 PM EDT

Where is McCain''s leadership after chairing the Senate COMMERCE Committee for so many years while he pushed for the deregulation that caused this crisis?

Where''s McCain''s leadership after 26 years in Washington?

McCain is more of the same trying to look like his fingerprints are not all over the Washington mess.

A LIAR and a FRAUD.
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by mattcat25 September 22, 2008 5:51 PM EDT
"The Obama campaign responded that McCain%u2019s plan would not help the current situation."

but, that''s John McCain''s current, or lastest plan. We need to wait and see when McCain will FLIP-FLOP again...and again...and...
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by jamnsnyth September 22, 2008 5:33 PM EDT
McCain is the head of the commission that deregulated Wall Street and the Banks and he shares responsibility for the problems we all face today. But he has not once owned up to his responsibility in all this yet. McCain%u2019s deregulation policies should left in the past along with his twentieth century OLD Style Politics of personal destruction, distraction and do and say anything to win." The Same Old ideas that got us into this mess will NEVER fix the problem%u2019s we face as a Nation. It%u2019s only by Progressive Ideas that we will fix this country%u2018s problems. This election calls for NEW ideas from a forward thinking person. And that is why I will vote for Obama.
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by PulSamsara September 22, 2008 4:36 PM EDT
----------------------------------

The McCain camp is growing Desperate :)

Why would America REWARD complete Republican failure ?

We wont.
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by jackiean1 September 22, 2008 4:34 PM EDT
Obama thinks "judgement to lead" means telling his supporters to get up in others faces and argue.

Scheesh what will he do when he meets with the terrorist regimes face to face?

He is an empty suit. All rhetoric and no solutions.
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by bm6005 September 22, 2008 4:18 PM EDT
Perhaps Obama should add to the confusion like McSame. Shooting off your mouth is no solution. All the geniuses in this financial area say they don''t have the foggiest idea how bad things really are ala S&L c rap of the 90''s. Another repuke orchestrated *** of the middle class.
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by freepress6 September 22, 2008 4:01 PM EDT
Isn''t "Bailout" Bush the guy who hurried us into Iraq? He''s no more a Republican than I am -- and neither is McCain, frankly -- but if the Demo -controlled Congress rolls over for Bush on this bailout scheme I''ll be voting GOP in the future.
Sterling Greenwood
Aspen Free Press
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by freepress6 September 22, 2008 3:59 PM EDT
Isn''t "Bailout" Bush the guy who hurried us into Iraq? He''s no more a Republican than I am and neither is McCain, but if the Demo-controlled Congress rolls over for Bush on this bailout scheme, I''ll be voting Republican in the future
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