The economy was key to speeches by both Obama and McCain Barack Obama's campaign has dismissed a $300bn plan by John McCain to help struggling homeowners for being "costly and out of touch". Both men were back on the campaign trail after a TV debate on Tuesday. With the ailing US economy a key issue for voters, Mr McCain fleshed out his plan for the government to buy up loans from troubled homeowners. Mr Obama accused his rival of copying Bush administration policies that "led us into this mess in the first place". The candidates swiftly endorsed a coordinated action by the Federal Reserve and central banks in other countries to cut in interest rates by 0.5% to stimulate world growth. Senator Obama called for Congress to pass another economic stimulus package, and was boosted by a new poll showing him ahead on all main topics, with a substantial 13% lead on the key issue of the economy. See full list of issues being tracked Senator McCain urged the adoption of the plan to help home-owners that he proposed during the second of three debates in Nashville, Tennessee, on Tuesday. Economic focus On Wednesday, the Arizona senator held joint campaign appearances with running mate Sarah Palin in the key northern swing states of Ohio and Pennsylvania. The dream of owning a home should not be crushed under the weight of bad mortgages

John McCain

Republican presidential candidate At a rally in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, Mr McCain called his home ownership resurgence plan "a critical first step our country must take to get through this time of crisis". He said the loans of homeowners who had seen their home's value fall below their debt would be structured into affordable mortgages. Mrs Palin, meanwhile, said Mr Obama's efforts to tie Mr McCain to Mr Bush were "starting to wear pretty darn thin". "Last night Senator McCain talked about real and pragmatic solutions," said Mrs Palin. "Barack Obama talked about why he'd rather run against George Bush." The Obama campaign dismissed Mr McCain's financial proposal as "more costly and out-of-touch than we ever imagined". "John McCain wants the government to massively overpay for mortgages in a plan that would guarantee taxpayers lose money," said Jason Furman, Mr Obama's senior economic advisor. 'No bamboozling' Meanwhile, the Democratic candidate focused on his healthcare plans during a rally in Indiana, a state once regarded as safely Republican but which now seems within his reach as polls swing in the Democrats' favour. Polls suggest the Illinois senator has a bigger lead on health care than on any other issue. Linking the economic proposals of Mr McCain to those of President George W Bush, Mr Obama said it was "a time for resolve and steady leadership". Palin's criticism of Obama was blunter than her running partner's He added that his rival thought Americans would not notice the downsides of the McCain campaign health-care proposals. "We're not going to be hoodwinked," said Mr Obama. "We're not going to be bamboozled. We're not going to let him get away with it." A new monthly poll from Rasmussen suggested that the Democrats were now more trusted than the Republicans on all 10 issues that they have been tracking for the past year. The Democrats have the biggest lead on domestic issues, such as health care, education and social security, but they are also now more trusted on foreign policy issues such as the War on Terror, immigration and Iraq. In earlier polls, Republicans had led on these issues. A new Gallup poll also suggests that more voters are likely to vote for Mr Obama because of his economic tax plans, while on balance more voters have an unfavourable view of Mr McCain's economic policies. Polls suggest most Americans thought Mr Obama came out on top after the Nashville debate, with Mr McCain failing to land a knock-out punch. Attack ads With the 4 November election nearing, the campaigns have become more aggressive, launching new television adverts attacking their opponent's credentials. Joe Biden criticised attacks on Obama, his running partner Mr McCain's team released an advertisement attacking Mr Obama's character and suggesting he is simply not presidential. For its part, the Obama camp's new advertisement attacks the Republican's health care proposal for taxing employer-based insurance plans, the type held by the majority of US workers. Meanwhile, Joe Biden, Senator Obama's running mate, has attacked the negative tone of the McCain campaign. He said that attempts by his vice-presidential rival, Sarah Palin, to link Mr Obama to a former domestic terrorist was an effort to inject fear and loathing into the campaign. Mr Biden - who was on Wednesday campaigning in Florida, another key swing state that has been hard-hit by the economic crisis - called the Republican effort to tie Senator Obama to 1960s radical William Ayers, now a Chicago professor, "mildly dangerous". WHO IS MORE TRUSTED ON THE ISSUES? October 2008 Issue Democrats (%) Republicans (%) Dem lead Importance of issue* Health care 54 34 20 59 Education 53 34 19 63 Economy 51 38 13 80 Social Security 49 37 12 54 Govt ethics/ corruption 40 30 10 69 Abortion 47 38 9 42 Taxes 47 42 5 57 Iraq 47 42 5 55 Nat Security/ War on Terror 47 44 3 64 Immigration 40 38 2 41 * % ranking issue as very important Return to top



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