There was a politician who accepted $200,000 in campaign contributions, (today's dollars) over a half dozen free vacations via private jet to Bahama, and other perks. This politician voted against efforts to strengthen laws which governed the contributor's business. Then in 1987, when the politician found out the government was investigating his "friend," he tried to get the regulators to back off.

That politician was John McCain. McCain was protecting Charles Keating, the head of the then Lincoln Savings and Loan. When the Lincoln Savings and it's parent company went under, over 23,000 pensioners lost their money.

Last Monday, McCain said the economy was fundamentally sound; 10 days later he's decided he needs to be in Washington to solve this "crisis" and promptly cancels his Letterman interview.

The he waited 22 hours in NYC...before making his "urgent" trip to DC. This gave him time to have a nice dinner in the city, then the next morning go to another NYC hotel to address the Clinton Global Initiative crowd.

When he finally got to DC, it was the first time since April 6, 2008 that he showed up to possibly vote on some legislation. Neither McCain or Obama are on any Senate Committees associated with writing the proposed legislation to solve this "crisis".

McCain is right when he says he doesn't really understand economic issues. And the American people are right when they see McCain using this crisis as a gimmick to avoid debating Obama. And then to use the same excuse to cancel the Vice Presidential debates? Give us a break.

Some folks here should be turning down their AM radios and picking up newspaper and start looking for some facts.

Thanks to the Republican "oversight" of the last 8 years, we are being told we HAVE to bail out the Wall Street millionaires and their companies who scammed the system, to the cost of $700 Billion. That, in addition to spending $12 Billion a month in Iraq; over $100 Billion per year.

The Bush/McCain years have done to more expand government, and increase the deficit than anyone could have thought.

And still, McCain wants to give our health insurance plans the Wall Street treatment. He said this in Contingencies Magazine, Sept/Oct08: "Opening up the health insurance market to more vigorous nationwide competition, as we have done over the last decade in banking, would provide more choices of innovative products less burdened by the worst excesses of state-based regulation."

The mess the country is in is clearly the result of the party that has been minding and controlling the store for the past 8 years. There is no way Republicans are not responsible. The President decides what legislation to sign, and the Republicans decide what legislation to veto.

We need someone in charge who's looking out for the average guy, not the financial elite. I am voting for the successful guy raised by a mother on food stamps, not the guy who doesn't know how many houses he owns, and buys $450 loafers, and says the "economy is fundamentally sound" (until he flip-flops on that too)

We need the smart folks to get us out of this mess, and that is clearly Obama/Biden.

Mr. Clarke, you simply cannot wish away facts.

Phil Gramm was the chief author of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, hence the top billing. 43 Republicans, including John McCain voted for this bill, 39 Democrats, including Joe Biden, did not.

From January 2000 to now the Republican's have controlled the Congress. The Democrats have had a majority in the Senate the past two years, but not a veto-proof one. So any legislation must also be supported by a number of Republicans. Hence, nothing gets done.

If the Republicans are claiming this crisis was caused by Democrats, why didn't anyone stand up and fix it? They've had 8 years. Why didn't they? Because these are the laws the lobbyists for Wall Street were happy to write, and happy to pay the legislators to ignore.

John McCain has spent decades in Washington, why didn't he speak up then? I thought he was supposed to be this maverick guy.

McCain has years of experience supporting financial institutions, not the customers of those institutions. And HIS Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac election connections? McCain's current campaign manager was the SENIOR LOBBYIST for Fannie Mae, and received $30,000 per month for five years to do so.

So, the notion that the Republicans are in no way responsible for this mess, or for fixing it, is quite a stretch.

I am voting for the successful guy raised by a mother on food stamps, not the guy who doesn't know how many houses he owns, and buys $450 loafers, and says the "economy is fundamentally sound".

We need the smart folks to get us out of this mess, and that is clearly not Palin/McCain.

Thanks for calling to attention the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Financial Services Modernization Act, authored by Republican Phill Gramm. Phill Gramm is now an economic advisor to McCain. Gramm, the man who said anyone complaining about today's economy is a whiner.

Since that law went into effect in 1999, Congress went into permanent recess. That's what is being suggested. The Republicans have been in control since then, and who from that party stood up to correct this legislation? No one. It's the law the lobbyists for the financial institutions were happy to write, and happy to pay the legislators to ignore.

John McCain has spent decades in Washington supporting financial institutions, not the customers of those institutions.

The notion that the Republicans are in no way responsible for this mess, or for fixing it, is quaint.

Thanks for calling to attention the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Financial Services Modernization Act, authored by Republican Phill Gramm. Phill Gramm is now an economic advisor to McCain. Gramm, we recall, said anyone complaining about today's economy is a whiner.

Since that law went into effect in 1999, Congress went into permanent recess. That's what is being suggested. The veto-proof Republican Congress has been in control since then, and who from that party stood up to correct this legislation? No one. It's the law the lobbyists for the financial institutions were happy to write, and happy to pay the legislators to ignore.

John McCain has spent decades in Washington supporting financial institutions, not the customers of those institutions.

The notion that the Republicans are in no way responsible for this mess, or for fixing it, are quaint.

Let's talk about the wisdom and experience of John McCain.

McCain spokesperson Carly Fiorina said neither McCain or Palin could run a company, yet Warren Buffet said either Obama or Hillary easily could.

And McCain said on Fox News (Oct 21, 2007) that being a governor for short period of time, or mayor for a short period of time, was not a good enough qualification to be President. So much for the wisdom of that Sarah Palin choice. Or was that another flip-flop?

On Monday, it wasn't a 3am call, but a Wall Street wake-up call of a crisis hitting the heart of American capitalism, and the McCain immediate response a day later: let's set up a commission. The candidate with all the "experience" wants to solve a crisis by doing the oldest Washington trick in the book, getting a commission together of Washington Insiders to talk, discuss, and study the problem.

But in the face of skyrocketing foreclosures, Wall Street failures, out-of-control fuel prices, McCain says the economy is fundamently strong. He just doesn't get it.

There is no McSame economic plan. There is a Bush economic plan. And how is that working for you? It's working well for Bear Sterns, Merrill Lynch, Lehman Brothers, Washington Mutual, homebuyers suckered into crappy mortgages that should have never been written, and anyone trying to pay for grocercies and gas.

Oh, wait, this just in, there is a difference with Mr Bush. Senator McSame is going to tax you on the value of your health insurance benefits. For a family of four, that's about $12,000 that will be considered taxable income, but Senator McSame will give you a $5000 credit, so you will be only taxed on an additional $7000. See, not so bad. The money for the Big Oil tax BREAKS has to come from somewhere!

Today, Wall Street drops 500 points, the worst one day plunge since 911. Two major American financial institutions need bailing out, or buying out. A week ago, FannieMae/FreddiMac get bailed out. AIG and Washington Mutual are on thin ice.

And today, John McSame announces the "fundamentals of the economy are strong". A few months ago, he tells a TV interviewer he's not knowledgeable about the economy. Senator, the fundamentals of American capitalism are business, banking, and Wall Street.

Senator, you have been in office for 24 years, and for the last eight you have been part of the Republican controlled congress. Diluting oversight, putting industry execs in positions of regulation over their own businesses, and allowing lobbyists to run the government.

But only now, in the judgment of John McSame do we need reform. And who better to reform than the candidate who went along with all the garbarge that brought us here. And who will advise him on these reforms? The staff of lobbyists that now surround him?

People are just now waking up to this reformer, and after his incoherent response to the financial crisis we can see thru this whole maverick scam. I bet McSame wishes Sideshow Sarah was there to distract the audience with her litany of lies. Sold any more planes lately? Or tell us about the tanning beds you bought for the governor's mansion, or the realtor you made Director of the Alaska State Division of Agriculture.

People are interested in the Palin Troopergate investigation, which was started by a bipartisan committee of five, three Republicans, and 2 Democrats, long before her selection as VP. Today we learn that Palin will not talk to the investigators. What is she hiding?

I am also looking forward to Sarah Palin releasing her college transcripts from all 6 colleges she attended in five years, and I would also like another look at John McSame's rank at graduation-I understand he was fifth from the bottom.

This is the first I've heard about something in Obama's transcripts; maybe Governor Palin can get a government earmark to study them. She's already put in for $198 million of earmarks this year.

By the way, the New York Post "story" about Obama wanting to delay troop withdrawal, was written by Amir Taheri. Taheri worked under the Shaw of Iran and is living as a refugee. His only hope of returning to his home country is if Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is overthrown...by the US or Israel. Did I mention he's also an advisor to President Bush? I'm sure is story is just as accurate in his reporting as Saddam's propagandist, Baghdad Bob.

PeterClarke--After 8 years of business friendly, regulation-cutting, government bailout Republican rule, businesses-even those on Wall Street are failing, and companies are still shipping jobs overseas and getting a tax break to do so. Yes, we should stick with this plan. Add to that, John McSame's new tax on the value of our health insurance (taxpolicycenter.org) and this makes as much sense as his selection of VP.

Sarah Palin, executive experience? Really. As Mayor, she decided to build a hockey rink in town on land the city didn't own. No one bothered to check. She left the town with a pending lawsuit and a $20 million dollar budget deficit. She went from a balanced budget, which is what the last mayor left her, to a huge deficit for any town, but even worse for small Wasilla. Now that's Executive Experience we've seen a lot of these last 8 years.

As Governor, Ms Palin appointed a high school classmate, Franci Havemeister, to be the director of the Alaska State Division of Agriculture, a $95,000 position. A former real estate agent, Ms Havemeister said her childhood love of cows was a qualification for running the $2 million dollar agency. That is Executive Experience we've seen a lot of these last 8 years. Way to Go, Brownie!

We know that she is now under investigation for using her influence to have the supervisor of the state troopers fired, for not firing someone associated with a bad divorce in her family. (a bipartisan investigation into this was started way before her VP nod). So she tried to misuse her position of authority to have a government employee fired. That IS Executive Experience we've seen a lot of these last 8 years.

Meanwhile, while Obama was in the US Senate, he authored 152 bills, and co-sponsored another 427. That includes the Coburn-Obama Govt Transparency Act, and the Lugar-Obama Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Conventional Weapons Threat Reduction Act. Both of which became law. And the "Lugar" part of that bill is Republican Dick Lugar. Do you think Ms Palin knows what any of these are without looking at her index cards?

I think it would be good to pass on Ms Palin's so-called experience, as well as each and every Bush policy McSame continues to support.

It's so important to welcome students and new voters alike to the democratic process. A process so many have fought for, but yet so few feel a part of.

Ms. Cusunano is a good citizen to be skeptical, however I have looked into Obama's view on guns, and there is absolutely no reason to believe he would take away anyone's guns. The NRA of course would say otherwise, but this issue is a big money maker for them. I would hope Obama wouldn't let the mentally ill or terrorists in this country have them. I don't know the NRA stand on that.

Obama told Montana Senator John Testor last week, "I'm not taking your guns away and don't let anybody tell you that I will."

Ms. Cusunano and Ms. Rodriguez are also interested in education and healthcare, and I would hope they look into financial burden everyone will face with John McCain's plan put a new tax on your health insurance. (taxpolicycenter.org) This, while Obama will lower costs of health insurance to both the employer and the employee. Of course you keep your doctors. This plan gives businesses more money to grow, and you more money in your pocket.