McCain Suspends Campaign

McCain Suspends Campaign to help push Financial Bailout Plan:

WASHINGTON - Republican presidential candidate John McCain on Wednesday suspended his campaign to help Congress craft legislation to deal with the financial crisis on Wall Street.

It appeared Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama was also set to halt campaigning - and there were indications the two men planned to call on President George W. Bush to join them in emergency sessions to help pass a proposed $700-billion bailout of the nation's troubled banks.

"It's time for both parties to come together to solve this problem," McCain, 72, said in a statement. "We must meet as Americans, not as Democrats or Republicans, and we must meet until this crisis is resolved."

The unprecedented move by McCain apparently came after a Wednesday morning phone call with Obama about the financial crisis.

In a statement, Obama's campaign said the Democratic candidate had initiated talks with McCain in a bid to forge a compromise deal that would allow speedy passage of legislation authorizing the federal government to buy up toxic mortgage assets that have triggered the financial meltdown.

"At 8:30 this morning, Senator Obama called Senator 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 campaign spokesman Bill Burton said in a statement. "At 2:30 this afternoon, Senator McCain returned Senator Obama's call and agreed to join him in issuing such a statement. The two campaigns are currently working together on the details."

McCain said he would suspend his campaign and return to Washington. He has asked that the first presidential debate, planned for Friday in Oxford, Miss., be postponed.

"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 said.

"If we do not, credit will dry up, with devastating consequences for our economy. People will no longer be able to buy homes and their life savings will be at stake. Businesses will not have enough money to pay their employees. If we do not act, every corner of our country will be impacted. We cannot allow this to happen."

The developments in the presidential race came as Bush, facing mounting resistance on Capitol Hill to the bailout plan, was set to address the nation Wednesday night on the U.S. financial crisis.

White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said Bush wants Americans to "fully understand the depths of the crisis." The president planned to underscore why he believes it's vital for the government to rescue mortgage firms and banks that many people blame for plunging the country towards a full-blown economic meltdown, Perino said.

Bush's address comes amid growing opposition to the bailout by Republicans, who believe the plan perverts the free market, and Democrats who want far greater government oversight of firms receiving help. Earlier Wednesday, Federal Reserve chairman told Congress financial markets remain under "extraordinary stress" and warned lawmakers must act to "avert what could be very serious consequences for our financial markets and our economy."

But McCain said he did not believe Bush's plan would pass Congress without substantial changes to the proposal submitted by the White House.

Obama addressed the crisis at a rally earlier Wednesday in Dunedin, Fla.

"We meet here at a time of great uncertainty for America. The era of greed and irresponsibility on Wall Street and in Washington has led us to a financial crisis as serious as any we have faced since the Great Depression," Obama said. "They said they wanted to let the market run free but they let it run wild, and in doing so, they trampled our core values of fairness, balance, and responsibility to one another."

source: McCain suspends campaign to help push financial bailout plan

"...help pass a proposed $700-billion bailout of the nation's troubled banks."

lol are you kidding me?
Where is this money coming from?
Oh yeh taxpayers dollars....

^ Yea, I can't defend my dear McCain on this one.

Our government is turning Socialist by nationalizing/bailing out these huge companies. It's a sad thing.