Rivals Focusing on Economy
Democrat Barack Obama blamed stagnant wages and a lack of federal oversight of the credit and housing markets during President Bush's administration for the U.S. economic slowdown.
The Illinois senator said yesterday that flat-income growth even as the economy expanded drove consumers to take on too much debt, exposing them to bankruptcy and foreclosure.
Even consumers with good credit are feeling the squeeze because of declining home prices, he said at a campaign event in Elkhart, Ind., in response to a question about his economic plan.
"People still weren't getting more money in their pockets, at the same time costs were going up," Obama said, "so it was harder to save, harder to retire, which meant people were maxing out on their credit cards, they were taking out home-equity loans to pay off bills."
Republican John McCain also focused on the economy while visiting Ohio, an election battleground where the unemployment rate is 6.6 percent - 0.9 percentage points above the national average.
Economic concerns are the top issue in the presidential campaign as energy costs have risen, employers have cut payrolls for seven straight months, consumer prices have surged, and home prices have fallen.
McCain likened his economic plan to the U.S. strategy of adding more troops to Iraq, saying this country needs an "economic surge" to deal with the crisis in the housing and credit markets, high energy prices, and job losses.
"We need to crack down on those who have abused our credit market and caused this housing decline," the Arizona senator said at a Merillat Cabinetry plant in Jackson, Ohio.
"And we need to take action to support American businesses so that we stop jobs from going overseas and create more jobs here at home."
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