WASHINGTON — John McCain will suspend campaigning to work in Washington on the Wall Street bailout and is asking that Friday night’s kickoff presidential debate with rival Barack Obama be delayed.
Obama said he didn’t think the debate should be delayed and also rejected the idea that a presidential candidate should suspend the campaign because of a crisis.
“This is exactly the time when the American people need to hear from the person who, in approximately 40 days, will be responsible for dealing with this mess,” he told reporters in Clearwater, Fla., where he was preparing for the debate. It’s scheduled to focus on foreign policy and national security.
McCain said Wednesday in a statement that he’ll break off from campaigning on Thursday and return to the nation’s capital to help work on the proposed $700 billion bailout.
“America this week faces an historic crisis in our financial system. We must pass legislation to address this crisis,” McCain said in a statement from New York. “Tomorrow morning, I will suspend my campaign and return to Washington.
“I am directing my campaign to work with the Obama campaign and the Commission on Presidential Debates to delay Friday night’s debate until we have taken action to address this crisis,” McCain’s statement added. “It’s time for both parties to come together to solve this problem.”
An aide said that McCain also would suspend television advertising and fundraising.
McCain said that he didn’t believe the bailout would pass in the form that was proposed. He urged President Bush to convene a meeting with congressional leaders from both parties and invited Obama to join him there. He urged that they forge a bipartisan bailout solution.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., issued a statement thanking McCain for his concern, but inviting him and Obama not to inject themselves into the bailout process.
“It would not be helpful at this time to have them come back during these negotiations and risk injecting presidential politics into this process or distract important talks about the future of our nation’s economy,” Reid said. “If that changes, we will call upon them. We need leadership; not a campaign photo op.
“If there were ever a time for both candidates to hold a debate before the American people about this serious challenge, it is now,” Reid’s statement said.
Obama said that he and McCain could easily fly back to Washington from Mississippi if needed on Friday, noting that each has his own campaign plane.
“Presidents are going to have to deal with more than one thing at a time. It’s not necessary for us to think that we can only do one thing and suspend everything else.
“What I’ve told the leadership in Congress is that, if I can be helpful, then I am prepared to be anywhere, anytime. What I think is important, though, is that we don’t suddenly infuse Capitol Hill with presidential politics at a time when we’re in the middle of some very delicate and difficult negotiations.”
The host of the debate said it would go on as scheduled on Friday at 9 p.m. Eastern time.
“The University of Mississippi is going forward with the preparation for the debate. We are ready to host the debate, and we expect the debate to occur as planned,” the school said in a statement.
“At present, the university has received no notification of any change in the timing or venue of the debate. We have been notified by the Commission on Presidential Debates that we are proceeding as scheduled.”
Obama’s campaign signaled that it first approached McCain Wednesday morning, but only about issuing a joint statement on the proposed bailout and not on a delay in the debate.
“At 8:30 this morning, Sen. Obama called Sen. McCain to ask him if he would join in issuing a joint statement outlining their shared principles and conditions for the Treasury proposal and urging Congress and the White House to act in a bipartisan manner to pass such a proposal,” Obama spokesman Bill Burton said.
“At 2:30 this afternoon, Sen. McCain returned Sen. Obama’s call and agreed to join him in issuing such a statement. The two campaigns are currently working together on the details.”
McCain spokesman Brian Rogers offered a slightly different account in a statement:
“Sen. Obama phoned Sen. McCain at 8:30 am this morning but did not reach him. The topic of Sen. Obama’s call to Sen. McCain was never discussed. Sen. McCain was meeting with economic advisers and talking to leaders in Congress throughout the day prior to calling Senator Obama,” Rogers said.
“At 2:30 p.m., Sen. McCain phoned Sen. Obama and expressed deep concern that the plan on the table would not pass as it currently stands. He asked Sen. Obama to join him in returning to Washington to lead a bipartisan effort to solve this problem.”
The debate locations and dates were set last year by the bipartisan Commission on Presidential Debates. The campaigns agreed to the scheduled and signed off on the formats last weekend.
By Steven Thomma, McClatchy News
Leo • Sep 25, 2008 at 2:54 pm
It says a lot even if Barack will still go to the debate. he makes a great point that he needs to be able to handle multiple challenges not just do one by one
Leo • Sep 25, 2008 at 9:54 pm
It says a lot even if Barack will still go to the debate. he makes a great point that he needs to be able to handle multiple challenges not just do one by one
Leo • Sep 25, 2008 at 2:51 pm
McCain might be an experienced debater but does that really mean much if they pretty know much of what they are going to state? Obama speaks very well and i think he knows pretty well about the issues just have to talk about them.
Tell McCain’s VP to read a little more, even about her own running mate. look at the interviews she done. Might as well just go on and say MAVERICK 100 times.
The amount of money he makes from being a senator is honestly irrelevant for the amount of money his wife makes haha
McCain will reek not only desperation, we will all reek of another Great Depression. Wow its not his strong point then what the hell is he gonna do about it? i would rather vote for someone that has an idea than little if not any of an idea.
Leo • Sep 25, 2008 at 9:51 pm
McCain might be an experienced debater but does that really mean much if they pretty know much of what they are going to state? Obama speaks very well and i think he knows pretty well about the issues just have to talk about them.
Tell McCain’s VP to read a little more, even about her own running mate. look at the interviews she done. Might as well just go on and say MAVERICK 100 times.
The amount of money he makes from being a senator is honestly irrelevant for the amount of money his wife makes haha
McCain will reek not only desperation, we will all reek of another Great Depression. Wow its not his strong point then what the hell is he gonna do about it? i would rather vote for someone that has an idea than little if not any of an idea.
Brett • Sep 25, 2008 at 8:36 pm
McCain didn’t put “country first.” He put — as he always has — “politics first.” He is playing a political game and it seems to be backfiring.
McCain said he was suspending his campaign to deal with the crisis and immediately head back to Washington. That was a lie. He spent the rest of yesterday in New York doing several interviews, including one with Katie Couric. He later gave a stump speech (which, the last time I checked, was considered campaigning). He was still in New York as of this morning, and he was still running campaign ads on TV throughout the battleground states, and he was still soliciting money from campaign donors on his web site. The reality is that he never intended to “suspend” his campaign. He used that statement only as a sound-bite and a form of political grandstanding. McCain reeks of desperation.
Brett • Sep 25, 2008 at 1:36 pm
McCain didn’t put “country first.” He put — as he always has — “politics first.” He is playing a political game and it seems to be backfiring.
McCain said he was suspending his campaign to deal with the crisis and immediately head back to Washington. That was a lie. He spent the rest of yesterday in New York doing several interviews, including one with Katie Couric. He later gave a stump speech (which, the last time I checked, was considered campaigning). He was still in New York as of this morning, and he was still running campaign ads on TV throughout the battleground states, and he was still soliciting money from campaign donors on his web site. The reality is that he never intended to “suspend” his campaign. He used that statement only as a sound-bite and a form of political grandstanding. McCain reeks of desperation.
The Facts • Sep 25, 2008 at 12:56 am
McCain is an experienced debater, whereas Obama does not do well without a teleprompter. To say that McCain is deliberately avoiding the debates is a bit of a stretch. McCain is going along with this campaign’s message of Country First by putting his campaign on hold to focus on ironing out a plan of action. It is true that the economy is not his strong point, but hes getting paid 100 grand a year as a senator. At least hes making the effort to show up to work. Good for him.
The Facts • Sep 25, 2008 at 7:56 am
McCain is an experienced debater, whereas Obama does not do well without a teleprompter. To say that McCain is deliberately avoiding the debates is a bit of a stretch. McCain is going along with this campaign’s message of Country First by putting his campaign on hold to focus on ironing out a plan of action. It is true that the economy is not his strong point, but hes getting paid 100 grand a year as a senator. At least hes making the effort to show up to work. Good for him.
Pat Murray • Sep 24, 2008 at 10:39 pm
I don’t think it’s a coincidence that McCain now wants to postpone the first debate immediately after a new ABC News/Washington Post poll comes out hours earlier and shows him trailing by 10 percent in the polls. And when respondents were asked who is better at handling the economy in that poll, Obama led by a whopping 57 to 33 percent. McCain is desperate at this point to change the focus of the election, and he will say or do anything to get elected it seems.
Pat Murray • Sep 25, 2008 at 5:39 am
I don’t think it’s a coincidence that McCain now wants to postpone the first debate immediately after a new ABC News/Washington Post poll comes out hours earlier and shows him trailing by 10 percent in the polls. And when respondents were asked who is better at handling the economy in that poll, Obama led by a whopping 57 to 33 percent. McCain is desperate at this point to change the focus of the election, and he will say or do anything to get elected it seems.
Deena Larsen • Sep 24, 2008 at 5:56 pm
So far, the legislation on the table looks to be: We give 700 billion dollars (our future spending for umpteen years) to the sole control of the Secretary of the Treasury. If this is the best the Republicans can come up with, then they’ll need more than McCain’s help to save this country.
Obama is right. What we need is to hear how each side would deal with the crisis–we need informed choices now, not panicked bad moves.
Deena Larsen • Sep 25, 2008 at 12:56 am
So far, the legislation on the table looks to be: We give 700 billion dollars (our future spending for umpteen years) to the sole control of the Secretary of the Treasury. If this is the best the Republicans can come up with, then they’ll need more than McCain’s help to save this country.
Obama is right. What we need is to hear how each side would deal with the crisis–we need informed choices now, not panicked bad moves.