Statement from Obama Campaign
"A few moments ago, President Bush called Senator Obama and asked him to attend a meeting in Washington tomorrow, which he agreed to do. Senator Obama has been working all week with leaders in Congress, Secretary Paulsen, and Chairman Bernanke to improve this proposal, and he has said that he will continue to work in a bipartisan spirit and do whatever is necessary to come up with a final solution. He strongly believes the debate should go forward on Friday so that the American people can hear from their next President about how he will lead America forward at this defining moment for our country," said Obama-Biden spokesman Bill Burton.
--Josh Marshall
Saving Sarah!
These guys are just digging into such depths of nonsense and desperation that pretty soon they're going to pop out in China, which will be helpful since they can ask the Chinese for the trillion dollars it'll take to bail out McCain's pals on Wall Street for the mess his economics advisor Phil Gramm made possible. Here's the latest attempt to exploit the financial market crisis for political ends (from CNN)...
McCain supporter Sen. Lindsey Graham tells CNN the McCain campaign is proposing to the Presidential Debate Commission and the Obama camp that if there's no bailout deal by Friday, the first presidential debate should take the place of the VP debate, currently scheduled for next Thursday, October 2 in St. Louis.
So we need to put the country first and cancel the vice presidential debate.
--Josh Marshall
High-larious
It seems that today during the time Barack Obama was waiting to hear back from Sen. McCain about their planned joint statement -- and while McCain says he was meeting with key advisors and becoming increasingly concerned about the financial crisis facing the country -- he was actually holding a special meeting with Lady Lynn Forester de Rothschild, the expat international financier who once supported Hillary Clinton but now is supporting McCain because she thinks Obama is "elitist".
--Josh Marshall
Work in Progress
TPMmuckraker has obtained a copy of a draft bailout plan that was circulating on the Hill this afternoon.
--David Kurtz
Americans Respond to McCain Stunt
SurveyUSA has just completed a snap poll on response to John McCain's request to cancel or postpone the presidential debate.
Several questions. But two key ones.
What to do about debates?
Hold as Scheduled 50%
Hold with Econ Focus 36%
Postpone 10%
Suspend Campaigns?
Suspend 14%
Continue 31%
Refocus on Fin. Crisis 48%
Would canceling the debates be good for America? 14% say yes.
--Josh Marshall
How's the Stunt Playing?
I'm very curious to see the big-media pundit reaction to McCain's debate cancellation stunt. When you see, can you let me know? Folks on the cable nets. Prestige pundits with their own blogs like Klein et al. Lemme know and we'll round them up.
Sen. Schumer on McCain stunt: "Just weird..."
Late Update: Joe Klein sees it for what it is -- a desperate gimmick. Doesn't like Obama's joint statement idea either.
--Josh Marshall
Claiming Credit for a Done Deal
A plugged in reader who's a Democratic lobbyist writes in with a good point:
The deal on the "bail out" is 98% done. Treasury has capitulated on almost every point. A draft is circulating on the Hill now. No one needs McCain to help do the remaining 2%....except the White House who has no standing on this matter on the Hill with either Democrats or Republicans.
--David Kurtz
Be Honest
Let's state outright a few obvious points. Bringing the presidential candidates and their press entourages back to Capitol Hill won't speed or improve the process of coming up with a good bailout deal. It will politicize it. That's so transparently obvious that it barely requires stating. And of course that is the point.
By going public with his 'suspension' announcement as a breaking news statement McCain intended to make any agreement between the candidate impossible. Contrast that with Obama's campaign, which apparently tried to get both campaigns to agree on a common set of principles privately before going public. There's no logical reason there can't be a presidential debate while a bailout plan is being negotiated.
Finally, does anyone think that McCain would have come up with this gambit if his polls were where they were two weeks ago instead of where they are today? Of course, not. This isn't a reaction to the national financial crisis but to the McCain polling crisis.
The McCain supporters who are cheering this aren't doing so because they think it's the right thing to do but because they hope it's ingenious politics.
If anyone can think of any reason why these points are not incontestably accurate, I would be obliged if you could let me know.
He's desperate and reckless. This is what it appears to be: political stunt dressed up as vainglorious self-sacrifice. In other words, typical John McCain.
--Josh Marshall
Reverse!
The guy who a week ago said the fundamentals of our economy remain strong suddenly suspends his campaign and wants to cancel the first presidential debate to rush back to Washington to deal with a crisis that his vice presidential candidate now says could lead to another Great Depression if not addressed immediately.
--David Kurtz
Reid to McCain: Just Stay Away
So far Dems are more than just a little lukewarm to this McCain gambit.
Here's part of Sen. Harry Reid's just-released statement:
I understand that the candidates are putting together a joint statement at Senator Obama's suggestion. But it would not be helpful at this time to have them come back during these negotiations and risk injecting presidential politics into this process or distract important talks about the future of our nation's economy. If that changes, we will call upon them. We need leadership; not a campaign photo op.
Reid also calls for the debate to go on as scheduled.
--David Kurtz
What's Obama's Play Here?
Early reports are that Obama wants the debate Friday to go forward as scheduled.
--David Kurtz
Wait ... Wait
What's changed today in the financial crisis other than John McCain's poll numbers tanking? Isn't this the campaign equivalent of faking an injury when you're down late in the 4th quarter? Note too that McCain was in the midst of debate prep when he made this decision.
Look at what appears to have happened. Obama reached out to McCain privately to agree to a shared set of bailout principles. McCain went off the handle again and tried to use the crisis as a way to call off the debates.
Late Update: One longtime reader says it's worse than that:
Obama reached out privately, because once this discussion went public it was bound to be politicized. Instead of taking his call and hearing what he had to say, McCain spent the next six hours huddling with his aides, searching for a way of turning the situation to his political advantage. His response - a unilateral, public call for cooperation - was designed to retake the initiative and steal Obama's thunder. But it also ends any hope of actual cooperation.Obama reached out, hoping that McCain would see something more important at stake than his own personal ambition. Alas, it would appear that there is nothing more important to McCain.
--Josh Marshall
Statement from Obama Campaign
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. 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.
--Josh Marshall
Desperate McCain Reacts to Polling Financial Crisis
McCain asks Barack to call off presidential debate.
(Desperate and Reckless: Ramp up Georgia crisis for votes; call off half the GOP convention; pick a demonstrably unqualified freshman governor to salvage his campaign; call for firing head of the SEC; now ask to have presidential debates delayed or canceled so he can politicize the bailout debate ... )
--Josh Marshall
McCain Suspending Campaign
The McCain camp has just sent word that the senator is suspending his campaign and returning to Washington to deal with the financial crisis.
McCain is also calling for a postponement of Friday night's debate and for Obama to suspend his campaign as well.
We have McCain's prepared remarks here.
Oddly, the cable news nets are now playing a recorded -- not live -- statement given by McCain himself announcing the suspension:
Late Update: The Obama camp initially sent out this statement from spokesperson Bill Burton in reaction to the McCain announcement:
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. 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.
Later Update: The White House approves and, as if on cue, issues a statement:
"We welcome Sen. McCain's announcement," said White House spokeswoman Dan Perino in a statement. "We are making progress in negotiations on the financial markets rescue legislation, but we have not finished it yet. Bipartisan support from Sens. McCain and Obama would be helpful in driving to a conclusion. The financial market crisis is a big problem that requires a big solution, and solving this in a bipartisan way will help prevent economic damage spreading from Wall Street to all Americans."
--David Kurtz
Trouble in Wingnut City
John McCain's strategy at the moment appears to be to vote against any federal financial market bailout plan -- whether it's a good one or bad one -- because it will give him an issue to pivot against both Obama, the Democratic Congress and Bush. But Sarah Palin appears now to have all but committed her running mate to support of whatever Congress passes. According to the AP, "Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin says the United States could be headed for another Great Depression if Congress doesn't act on the financial crisis." The context and quote aren't clear. So we'll have to see precisely what she said. But this would appear to box McCain in a bit -- or force a retraction from Palin.
Late Update: Here's video of Palin:
--Josh Marshall
TPMtv: Dollars and Nonsense
For $700 billion, I'd sure want to know what I was getting. So what is the American economy getting for its $700 billion bailout? Well, it's kind of like a bazooka, or a mythological sea monster, or something like that ...
Full-size video at TPMtv.com.
--Ben Craw
Heading for the Hills
From Lynn Sweet ...
John McCain campaign manager Rick Davis--under the spotlight because of his work for mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac--is skipping a Wednesday lunch with reporters sponsored by the Christian Science Monitor.On Tuesday, word came that McCain political director Mike DuHaime will substitute for Davis because he is "heading out on the trail" today.
Davis is the subject of stories in the New York Times and Newsweek about his work for the failed mortgage market makers. At issue right now: did Davis contradict McCain's statement that he has not been involved with Fannie and Freddie for some time.
--Josh Marshall
Obama Flatly Rejects McCain's Call For Postponement
Responding to McCain's unilateral suspension of his campaign because of the financial crisis, Obama said at a news conference that Friday's debate should be on.
Bush Bailout Plan Is Dead On Arrival
A Democratic alternative plan to the original bailout proposed is emerging from Hill negotiations.
Palin Ducks Reporter's Shouted Question At UN
Embattled McCain Camp Chief Skips Media Lunch
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- 9/24: Hotline/Diageo Pres-Tracker: Obama 48%, McCain 42%
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- 9/24: Res. 2000 Pres-Tracker: Obama 48%, McCain 44%
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