Obama, McCain try to convince American voters they can fix U.S. economy

Campaigning Friday in Pennsylvania, the Democrat who would be the United States' first black president derided McCain for a nomination acceptance speech Thursday night at the Republican National Convention that Obama said did little to resonate with a country grappling with a mortgage crisis, high gasoline prices and a litany of credit woes.

On a day when the U.S. government said the jobless rate hit a surprising 6.1 percent in August, Obama said Republicans are woefully out of touch with the plight of America's working class.

"If you watched the Republican National Convention over the last three days, you wouldn't know that we have the highest unemployment in five years because they didn't say a thing about what is going on with the middle class," Obama told workers at a specialty glass factory.

The economy has factored large for months in the U.S. presidential race, mostly eclipsing the Iraq war in the minds of voters. Both candidates have repeatedly seized on the issue to win over crucial working class voters and others in battleground states like Pennsylvania.

McCain, campaigning with vice presidential running mate Sarah Palin, told supporters in Wisconsin, another battleground state, that the sagging economy had squeezed everyone in the country.

"My friends, a little straight talk, a little straight talk," McCain told workers at a specialty glass factory. "These are tough times. Today the jobs report is another reminder these are tough times. They're tough times in Wisconsin, they're tough times in Ohio, tough times all over America."

He did not, however, say how he would fix the economy.

The candidates were bearing down for the last weeks of campaigning up to the Nov. 4 election, after the Republicans ended their convention in Minnesota on Thursday, a week after the Democrats convened in Colorado.

Both candidates used their conventions - where they officially accepted their parties' nominations and rallied their troops - to address vulnerabilities in their campaigns.

McCain needed to strike a precarious balance, distinguishing himself from the unpopular presidency of fellow Republican George W. Bush while not alienating the party's conservative base, which remains loyal to the president and has been skeptical of McCain.

1|2|Next Page>>

SharePrintEmail

Write a Comment

Terms

Enter your comments - 3000 characters max

Type in image code

Submit

 Receive China Post promos
 Respond to this email