Both Barack Obama and John McCain made statements today on the current economic crisis and bailouts. The contrast between the two in both substance and style could not be more striking.
Obama's Statement on the Economic Crisis & Bailouts
UPDATE 2:
Q&A Session of Press Conference Please note that there was one more question than this video includes but YouTube has a ten minute limit on video length (for regular users).
Barack Obama stressed that it is critical that we must also help Main Street and not allow CEOs, who have made reckless decisions to walk away with millions while emphasizing that we must put aside partisan bickering and political games.
The four principles laid out in Obama's plan reflect his philosophy that "America is prosperous when all can prosper":
"First, we cannot only have a plan for Wall Street. We must also help Main Street as well. I’m glad that our government is moving so quickly in addressing the crisis that threatens some of our biggest banks and corporations. But a similar crisis has threatened families, workers and homeowners for months and months and Washington has done far too little to help. For too long, this administration has been willing to hit the fast-forward button in helping distressed Wall Street firms while pressing pause when it comes to saving jobs or keeping people in their homes. We already know that the credit crisis that has emerged from our largest financial institutions is becoming a credit crunch for small business owners, homeowners, and students seeking loans in big cities and small towns. Now that American taxpayers are being called on to share in this new burden, we must take equally swift and serious action to help lift the burdens they face every day. In the same bipartisan spirit that is being shown with regard to the crisis on Wall Street, I ask Sen. McCain, President Bush, Republicans and Democrats to join me in supporting an emergency economic plan for working families — a plan that would help folks cope with rising gas and food prices, spark job creation through repair of our schools and roads, help states and cities avoid painful budget cuts and tax increases, help homeowners stay in their homes, and provide retooling assistance for America’s auto industry. John McCain and I can continue to argue about our different economic agendas for next year, but we should come together now to work on what this country urgently needs this year."
"The second principle I would like to see in the emerging plan from the Treasury and the Fed is that our approach should be one of mutual responsibility and reciprocity. It must not be designed to reward particular companies or the irresponsible decisions of borrowers or lenders. It must not be designed to enhance the personal gain of CEOs and management. The recklessness of some of these executives has helped cause this mess, even as they walk away with multimillion dollar golden parachutes while taxpayers are left holding the bag. As taxpayers are asked to take extraordinary steps to protect our financial system, it is only appropriate that those who benefit be expected to contribute to the protection of American homeowners and the American economy. Just as support is not designed to payoff egregious executive compensation, it should not reward those who are ruthlessly foreclosing on American families.
"Third, this plan must be temporary and coupled with tough new oversight and regulations of our financial institutions, and there must be a clear process to wind down this plan and restore private sector assets into private sector hands after restoring stability to the system. Taxpayers must share in any upside benefit that such stability brings.
"Fourth, this plan should be part of a globally coordinated effort with our partners in the G-20. This is a worldwide issue, and while the United States can and will lead in stabilizing the credit markets, we should ask other nations, who share in this crisis, to be part of the solution as well."
Barack Obama on the Emerging Federal Reserve - Treasury Plan
By contrast, John McCain struck a very different tone. Calling on the firing of the FEC chairman and launching attacks on Barack Obama, McCain focused on laying blame rather than presenting a solution oriented approach.
In his speech, McCain blamed the crisis on "the corruption and manipulation of our home mortgage system" and blasted Congress and the administration for not addressing the problems at the two mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which he said "led our housing system down a path where quick profit was placed before sound finance."
McCain also blasted his Democratic rival, Sen. Barack Obama, for not working to clean up the "corruption" at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
"We've heard a lot of words from Sen. Obama over the course of this campaign. But maybe just this once he could spare us the lectures and admit to his own poor judgment in contributing to these problems. The crisis on Wall Street started in the Washington culture of lobbying and influence peddling, and he was square in the middle of it."
John McCain, who has long oppposed regulation has recently adopted a position of more regulations.
"Speaking in Florida, he [McCain] said that the economys underlying fundamentals remained strong but were being threatened because of the greed by some based in Wall Street and we have got to fix it.
But his record on the issue, and the views of those he has always cited as his most influential advisers, suggest that he has never departed in any major way from his partys embrace of deregulation and relying more on market forces than on the government to exert discipline.
While Mr. McCain has cited the need for additional oversight when it comes to specific situations, like the mortgage problems behind the current shocks on Wall Street, he has consistently characterized himself as fundamentally a deregulator and he has no history prior to the presidential campaign of advocating steps to tighten standards on investment firms.
In Candidates, 2 Approaches to Wall Street
As Rachel Maddow stated, "When you're running on a decades-long record, dramatically changing a staunchly held position that you had for all those decades doesn't go unnoticed."
John McCain doesn't seem to know who he is. His recent populist rhetoric defies his long standing record and current policy proposals. This disconnect is becoming increasingly evident as the economic crisis intensifies and voters take a closer look at the candidates.
It's clear, that real change will not come about by allowing another four years of failed Republican policies to dominate the landscape, no matter how hard McCain tries to convince voters of such.
Barack Obama is the only candidate offering the "Change We Need."
Update 1:
Obama responds to McCain's speech this morning, courtesy of JedReport: