Obama calls McCain economic ideas 'out of touch'

[September 29, 2008]  DETROIT (AP) -- Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama on Sunday called Republican rival John McCain's economic philosophies out of touch and dangerous for a teetering economy as Congress quickly moved toward a financial bailout of Wall Street.

"The idea that if we give more and more to those with the most, prosperity will trickle down to everyone else; the idea that no harm will be done if we let lobbyists shred consumer protections and fight against every regulation as unwise or unnecessary," Obama said, offering his summation of McCain's ideas for what county law enforcement officials said was a crowd of about 35,000 gathered outside the Detroit Public Library.

"Well, what we have seen over the last few weeks is nothing less than the final verdict on this failed philosophy. And I am running for president of the United States because the dreams of the American people cannot be endangered anymore," Obama said.

Both candidates indicated Sunday that they will support a newly negotiated congressional deal for a $700 billion bailout of the financial industry. Obama said Washington has no choice but to act despite, calling the crisis an "outrage -- an outrage -- that we are now being forced to clean up their mess."

"We must act now. We have to act responsibly, because now that we're in this situation, your jobs, your life savings, entire sectors and the stability of our entire economy are at risk," Obama said.

Congressional leaders hope to have a House vote on the measure Monday, followed quickly by the Senate. Obama predicted it would pass soon.

Under the plan, the federal government would buy mortgage-backed securities and other bad debt held by banks and other investors, which should help troubled lenders make new loans and open frozen lines of credit. The government would later try to sell the packages to recover the money.

"My inclination is to support it because I think Main Street is now at stake," Obama told CBS "Face the Nation" in an interview.

McCain campaign spokesman Tucker Bounds said Obama's record of voting for higher taxes is "proof that his talk about the middle class is much different than his record."

Obama also used the visit to the Michigan battleground, his first in three weeks, to emphasize voter registration and encourage supporters to register to vote by the Oct. 6 deadline. Polls last week showed Obama pulling ahead of McCain in a state considered crucial to Obama's chances on Nov. 4.

Sen. Joe Biden, Obama's vice presidential running mate, called on everyone in the crowd to help register at least one person before the deadline.

At a $2,500-per couple fundraiser inside the library before the rally, Obama also urged about 125 supporters to register and vote.

"There's no project more important over the next five weeks," Obama said. "I'm absolutely convinced that we will win Michigan and if we win Michigan, we will win the general election and if we win the general election, you and I together will change this country and this world."

Michigan already has a high percentage of people registered to vote, thanks in part to efforts by the secretary of state's office to register people when they apply for a driver's license. Of the state's roughly 7.6 million eligible voters, more than 7.2 million are registered -- about 95 percent.

More than 100,000 of them have been added to the rolls since January. State officials won't have a final tally until after the Oct. 6 deadline, but Obama strategists hope to raise the total number of new registrants to 150,000.

Since the last federal election in 2006, more than 2 million Democrats have been added to voter rolls in the 28 states that register voters according to party affiliation. The Republicans have lost nearly 344,000 voters in the same states.

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On the Net:

Obama: http://www.barackobama.com/

McCain: http://www.johnmccain.com/

[Associated Press; By JESSE J. HOLLAND]

Associated Press writers Kathy Barks Hoffman and Corey Williams in Detroit and Stephen Ohlemacher in Washington contributed to this report.

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