Obama, McCain on '60 Minutes': Transcript (9-21-08)

Read the full transcript of the interviews of both Barack Obama and John McCain.

Scott Pelley: If you were President of the United States tonight and you were going to make an address to the nation regarding this economic emergency, what would you say?

John McCain: I would tell the American people that we're in tough times. This certainly isn't a Great Depression, don't get me wrong - lay out the problem and the cause of the problem they're badly frightened right now. And we've gotta get their trust and confidence back.

Pelley: Should they be badly frightened?

McCain: I think they should be deeply concerned about the fact that innocent Americans that don't work on Wall Street and don't work in Washington are the victims of the greed, the excess, and, yes, in some cases, corruption. There's a social contract that Adam Smith talked about between capitalism and the people. That contract has been broken. It's been broken by greed and access, aided and abetted by a government in Washington that's dominated by special interests and corruption.

Pelley: Are we in a recession?

McCain: Sure. Technically I don't know. Unemployment is up. Wages are down. Home foreclosures are incredibly high. Those people, they don't care whether technically we're in a recession or not. The fact is they're hurtin'. And they are hurting very, very badly.

Pelley: In 1999 you were one of the senators who helped pass deregulation of Wall Street. Do you regret that now?

McCain: No, I think the deregulation was probably helpful to the growth of our economy.

McCain has been an advocate of deregulation most of his career, but Thursday he endorsed the biggest bailout in history - a plan for the government to take on the bad debts of financial institutions.

"We're gonna take over these bad loans. We're gonna take over these bad - these bonds and we're gonna keep you alive. And we're gonna have the taxpayer help you out. But when the time comes and the economy recovers then anything that's gained back is gonna go to the taxpayers first. I'm not saying this isn't gonna be messy. And I'm not saying it isn't gonna be expensive. But we have to stop the bleeding," the senator said.

Pelley: But why would you let the Wall Street executives…

McCain: I'm not.

Pelley: …sail away on their yachts and leave this on the American taxpayer?

McCain: Well, it's not the greedy Wall Street people that I worry about, although I am, like most Americans, frankly, enraged. It's basically a Ponzi scheme, as you know, that sooner or later was gonna collapse. And I'd like to get that money back from them. But we've gotta fix the average citizen who's the innocent bystander that is in danger of losing their pensions, their 401(k)'s, their IRAs. Their very life savings are at risk here.

Pelley: You have called for the firing of the head of the Securities and Exchange Commission, the federal government organization that oversees the markets.

McCain: Yes. You know, and by the way, that technically he can't be, quote, fired. But I'll tell you, when I'm president, if I want somebody to resign, they resign.

Pelley: I'm curious. If you wanna fire Chris Cox, the chairman of the SEC, who would you replace him with?

McCain: This may sound a little unusual, but I've admired Andrew Cuomo. I think he is somebody who could restore some credibility, lend some bipartisanship to this effort.

'FOX News Sunday' Transcript (9-21-08)

Read the transcript.

WALLACE: If you hear some Democrats talk about a stimulus package — infrastructure, you know, a variety — unemployment relief, a variety — even a bailout to the auto companies. Are you going to "Christmas tree" this bill?

SCHUMER: No, we will not "Christmas tree" this bill. The times are too urgent. Everyone has their own desires and needs. It's going to have to wait.

Now, as for a stimulus package, I think that is — the economy is sinking. Unemployment, 6.1 percent. Many of us believe we need a stimulus package. Many of us believe this is the appropriate time to do it before Congress adjourns. We can't wait three months.

WALLACE: As part of the bailout?

SCHUMER: But it doesn't necessarily have to be part of the bailout. That's something that's being decided right now.

And I think our leaders both in the House and Senate are coming to the conclusion it should be alongside the bailout, but not part of it.

WALLACE: Senator Kyle, can you live with the kind of add-ons that Senator Schumer is talking about?

KYL: Well, first of all, I think that he is correct to say that these things should not be added on to this particular bill.

Related Post:

• Paulson, Bloomberg on Meet The Press: Transcript (9-21-08)

Paulson, Bloomberg on Meet The Press: Transcript (9-21-08)

Read the full transcript:

MR. BROKAW: Well, let's talk first of all about how this happened. Is it as a result of speed and the complexity of these instruments now, and the fact that no one really has their hand on the instruments that they're selling, they just pass them along?

SEC'Y PAULSON: Tom, that is one of the reasons. There have been excesses, I said, for a long time. We have overcomplexity. Mortgages are now securitized, sliced and diced, put into tranches, sold all over the world. There is a great deal of risk into this--in, in the system. That is one of the reasons. As I said, there's just been irresponsible practices. Borrowers have done things that were irresponsible also. But there's a lot of, a lot of mistakes made.

[...]SEC'Y PAULSON: Tom, there are a lot of questions, and I can understand there are a lot of questions. This is an urgent matter, and we need to move very quickly. But let me get to the first question. Yes, the cost. You know, I don't like the fact the taxpayer's being put in this position, but the numbers that are being used, which are--you know, we're talking about hundreds of billions of dollars--remember, this is not an expenditure, this is money that is being used to purchase these assets, as you said, these illiquid mortgage assets, which are very difficult to value. They will be held, and then they will be resold at some time. And so we can't determine what the cost is today. That's going to be based upon how quickly the economy recovers, what happens in the mortgage market. But I can assure you the cost won't be anything like what is put out to buy these investments and these assets. And when the assets are sold, the money will come back into the treasury.

But, again, this in not a position where I like to see the taxpayer. But it is far better than the alternative. The situation we had last week, where credit markets were frozen--you know, the stock market, the average American watches the stock market. They watched the stock market drop about 1,000 points and then recover on the news of this plan. But what they don't see is what's going on in the credit markets. And when companies can't borrow money and--this has a big impact on everyone. It's difficult to get jobs, it hurts people's budgets, retirement savings. This is a serious situation, and we need to avoid this.

-Related Post:

• 'FOX News Sunday' Transcript (9-21-08)

Obama Speech in Daytona, Florida: Transcript (9-20-08)

Read the full transcript.

I know how hard the women of this country are working. I know the anxiety so many of you are feeling right now, as we stand in the midst of the most serious financial crisis of our time. We've seen three of America's five largest investment banks fail or be sold off in distress. Our housing market is in shambles, and Monday brought the worst losses on Wall Street since the day after September 11th.

Everywhere you look, the economic news is troubling. But for so many of you, it isn't really news at all. You've seen your home values falling, gas prices rising, and bills piling up month after month. So you're working longer hours, or working more than one job just to get by. And then there are the jobs you do once the workday ends. Jobs like paying the bills, buying the groceries, making the dinner, doing the laundry, enforcing the bedtimes - the jobs you don't get paid for, but that hold our families together. Jobs that still, even in the year 2008, too often fall to women.

So I know these are difficult days. But here's what I also know. I know we can steer ourselves out of this economic crisis. That's who we are. That's what we've always done as Americans. Our nation has faced difficult times before. And at each of those moments, we've risen to meet the challenge because we've never forgotten that fundamental truth - that here in America, our destiny is not written for us, but by us.

But another thing I know is that we can't steer ourselves out of this crisis by heading in the same, disastrous direction. We can't change direction with a new driver who wants to follow the same old map. And that's what this election is all about.

Yesterday, my opponent, Senator McCain, gave a speech in which his big solution to this worldwide economic crisis was to blame me for it. This is a guy who's spent a quarter century in Washington. And after spending the entire campaign saying I haven't been in Washington long enough, he apparently now is willing to assign me responsibility for all of Washington's failures. I think it's pretty clear that Senator McCain is a little panicked, and that at this point, he is willing to say anything, do anything, change any position, violate any principle to try and win this election. And that is sad to see. That's not the politics we need.

So let's be clear.

There's only one candidate who - just this week - said a line he's repeated 16 times on this campaign - quote - "the fundamentals of our economy are strong."

There's only one candidate who's called himself "fundamentally a deregulator" when deregulation is part of the problem. My opponent actually wrote in the current issue of a health care magazine - the current issue - quote - "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."

So let me get this straight - he wants to run health care like they've been running Wall Street. Well, Senator, I know some folks on Main Street who aren't going to think that's a good idea.

There's only one candidate whose choice for Treasury Secretary is a man who thinks we're in a "mental recession" and has called the United States of America a "nation of whiners."

There's only one candidate whose campaign is being run by seven of Washington's most powerful lobbyists.

And folks, it isn't me.

I don't take a dime from Washington lobbyists and special interests. They do not run my campaign. They will not run my White House. And they will not drown out the voices of the American people when I'm President of the United States.

So when John McCain says that lobbyists "won't even get past the front gate" at his White House, my question is - who's going to stop them?

Those seven lobbyists?

His campaign manager?

The economic advisor, who got a $40 million golden parachute when she was fired as a CEO?

Or maybe the 26 advisors and fundraisers who lobbied for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac?

I mean, give me a break.

The same day my opponent attacked me for being associated with a Fannie Mae guy I've talked to for maybe 5 minutes in my entire life - the same day he did that - the head of the lobbying shop at Fannie Mae turned around and said wait a minute - "when I see photographs of Senator McCain's staff, it looks to me like the team of lobbyists who used to report to me."

Folks, you can't make this stuff up.

Bush Wall Street Bailout will Cost U.S. $1 Trillion

While most Americans are left to fend for themselves after the current financial collapse, powerful Wall Street investment bankers and big business get saved. This proves once and for all that a government that is supposed to represent us doesn't. And despite the rhetoric to the contrary, the corporations aren't against socialism as long as they are the beneficiaries.

FEDERAL OFFICIALS and congressional leaders will hash out a bailout of the nation's financial system this weekend that, with measures already taken, could add $1 trillion to the national debt, by some estimates.

The plan, under which the government would buy defaulted mortgages from distressed lending institutions, is intended to help prevent a financial services industry meltdown, improve the availability of credit and stave off further deterioration of the overall economy.

"This needs to be big enough to make a real difference and get to the heart of the problem," Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said Friday.

Paulson would only say that the cost of the rescue plan could run into the hundreds of billions. Some in Congress and on Wall Street are concerned that the new plan and other recent financial industry rescues could add alarmingly to the national debt - now $9.7 trillion.

We have to pay for the excesses of the financial industry and the failure of the lap-dogs-of business to regulate them.

Sen. Richard Shelby, the senior Republican member of the Banking Committee, talked about the overall pricetag this morning on ABC's Good Morning America.

"I figure it'll be at least a half a trillion," Shelby says. "But when you look at what the Fed has already done, and the extension of power to Treasury to deal with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, I believe we're talking about a trillion dollars."

But it is not clear whether the "rescue plan" will even work. Remember how the government response to the housing collapse was to give the public a tax rebate check. That obviously didn't amount to much while driving up the debt/deficit even further. This from a British perspective.

This is what we might call the $1trillion question. That's $1,000,000,000,000, by the way. It is a little like surgery. The US government has amputated the gangrenous leg of the banking system to save the patient. But it is now preparing to graft the infected limb on to the body politic of America. The US taxpayers will be lucky if they do not feel distinctly unwell as a result of this little experiment.

The truth is that simply buying the banks' worthless securities has been an option, if an unpalatable one, for the authorities since the credit crunch began a year ago. All the plans to lend against these assets, such as the Bank of England's Special Liquidity Scheme, and other "injections of liquidity", were temporary solutions, born out of a hope, if not an expectation, that the crisis would not be prolonged.

We know better now. What the American authorities have done is the only sure way to protect the banking system against further destabilisation. Short-selling or not, left to their own devices, the markets would sooner or later force more banks into the arms of the taxpayer anyhow. It is a sad day when hard-pressed citizens find themselves subsidising private banks for their stupid mistakes. But that is what's happening in the US, and it will surely be done here. The Bank of England hates the notion; but Gordon Brown may well feel that he has no choice.

So for the banks and their shareholders and staff, the US rescue plan is already working, and it will save the wider economy from yet more damage. It is less clear whether it will end the credit crisis or preserve America's fast disappearing economic hegemony.

Vermont Candidate Would Prosecute Bush for Murder, War Crimes

There are some out in government who have the integrity and guts to call for Bush's punishment for his war crimes. This President attacked a country without provocation (it's called the Bush Doctrine) and caused the deaths of 10s of thousands, including 4 thousand American troops. He is a criminal who should be prosecuted by the World Court just like other war criminals. It won't happen but it is the right thing to do.

Lots of political candidates make campaign promises. But not like Charlotte Dennett's.

Dennett, 61, the Progressive Party's candidate for Vermont Attorney General, said Thursday she will prosecute President Bush for murder if she's elected Nov. 4.

Dennett, an attorney and investigative journalist, says Bush must be held accountable for the deaths of thousands of people in Iraq — U.S. soldiers and Iraqi civilians. She believes the Vermont attorney general would have jurisdiction to do so.

She also said she would appoint a special prosecutor and already knows who that should be: former Los Angeles prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi, the author of "The Prosecution of George W. Bush for Murder," a new book.

"Someone has to step forward," said Dennett, flanked by Bugliosi at a news conference announcing her plan. "Someone has to say we cannot put up with this lack of accountability any more."

Dennett and two others are challenging incumbent Attorney General William Sorrell, a Democrat, in the Nov. 4 election.

Even some prominent conservatives like Andrew Sullivan agree (he is quoting a writer):

Conservative commentators have already warned against any future US prosecution, arguing that—reprehensible as the treatment of some detainees was—those responsible did not have criminal intent. The argument is unpersuasive on the facts, because Secretary Rumsfeld and others were warned by senior Pentagon civilian and military lawyers, including the navy general counsel, Alberto Mora, that their policies would violate the law.

Of course there are plenty on the left who agree that Bush should be held responsible.

Any attempt to hold high U.S. officials responsible for war crimes likely “will require time and effort but is nevertheless of urgent importance,” an authority on international law said today.

Amy Bartholomew, an associate professor of law at Carleton University , Ottawa , Canada , told a conference seeking prosecutions of President George W. Bush and his aides for war crimes that aggression by "the world's most powerful state" must be punished just as less powerful countries are punished.

Palin, McCain Iowa Speech Transcript (9-18-08)

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I'd like to give you a little straight talk, a couple of minutes of straight talk. We need reform in Washington and Wall Street. The financial markets are in crisis. Times are tough. Enormous strain is being put on American families and individuals in this country. I know that the events unfolding can be difficult to understand for many Americans. The dominos that we have seen fall this week began with the corruption and manipulation of our home loan system. The reason this crisis started was the abuses that took place within our home loan agencies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and -- and within our home loan system.

Two years ago I warned this administration and Congress that regulations for our home loan agencies that you know of and barely heard of, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, needed to be fixed. But I'm sorry to stand before you and tell you that nothing was done.

You know, Senator Obama talks a tough game on the financial markets, but the facts tell a very different story. He took more money from Fannie and Freddie than any senator except the Democratic chairman of the committee that regulates them. (Boos.) He put -- he put the chief executive officer of Fannie Mae -- excuse me, of -- yes, of Fannie Mae, who helped create this disaster -- he put that Democratic -- of the -- in charge of the selection process for who he was going to select for vice president of the United States. (Boos.) You know what, former -- Fannie's former general counsel is a senior advisor to his campaign. Whose side do you think he's on?

When I pushed legislation to reform Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Senator Obama was silent. He didn't lift a finger to avert this crisis. While the leaders of Fannie and Freddie were lining the pockets of his campaign, and they were sowing the seeds of the financial crisis we see today, and they also enriched themselves with millions of dollars in payments, that's not change; that's what's broken in Washington today, my friends. (Cheers, applause.)

My friends, I've got to give you a little more straight talk. There was no transparency in the books of the Wall Street banks. Banks and brokers took on huge amounts of debt and they hid the riskiest of all investments. Mismanagement and greed became the operating standard, while regulators were asleep at the switch. The regulators were asleep, my friends; they were not working for you.

The primary regulator of Wall Street is the Securities and Exchange Commission -- we call the SEC -- kept in place trading rules that let speculators and hedge funds turn our markets into a casino. They allowed naked short selling, which simply means you can sell stock without ever owning it. They eliminated last year an important rule called the uptick rule, that has protected investors for 70 years. Speculators pounded the shares of even good companies into the ground.

The chairman of the SEC serves at the appointment of the president, and in my view has betrayed the public trust. If I were president today, I would fire him. (Cheers, applause.)

We can't wait any longer for more failures in our financial system. Structures like the Resolution Trust Corporation that dealt with the failed savings and loan industry were designed to clean up the system and worked. Today we need a plan that doesn't wait until the system fails.

I'm calling for the creation of the Mortgage and Financial Institutions Trust, the MFI. The priorities of this trust will be to work with the private sector and regulators to identify institutions that are weak and take remedies to strengthen them before they become insolvent. For troubled institutions, this will provide an orderly process through which to identify bad loans and eventually sell them.

This will get the Treasury and other financial regulatory authorities in a proactive position instead of reacting in a crisis mode to one situation after the other. The MFI will enhance investor and market confidence, benefit sound financial institutions, assist troubled institutions, and protect our financial system, while minimizing taxpayer exposure. Tomorrow I'll be talking in greater detail about the crisis facing our markets, and what I'll do as president to fix this crisis and get our economy moving again. We have to do it for you and for America. (Cheers, applause.)

Senator Obama has never made the kind tough reform we need today. His idea of reform is what his party leaders in Congress order him to do. You know, we tried for bipartisan ethics reform, and he walked away from it because his bosses didn't want real change. I know how to make the change that Senator Obama and this Congress is afraid of. And I've fought both parties -- I've fought both parties to shake up up Washington, and I'm going to do it as president. (Cheers, applause.)

AUDIENCE: (Chanting.) John McCain! John McCain! John McCain! John McCain! John McCain! John McCain! John McCain! John McCain! John McCain! John McCain! John McCain!

SEN. MCCAIN: You know, my friends, those same congressional leaders who give Senator Obama his marching orders are now saying, incredibly, that this mess isn't their fault and they aren't going to take any action on this crisis until after the election. (Boos.) Senator Obama's own advisers are saying that the crisis will benefit him politically. My friends, that's the kind of me-first, country- second politics that are broken in Washington. (Cheers, applause.) My opponent sees an -- my opponent sees an economic crisis as a political opportunity instead of a time to lead. Senator Obama isn't change, he's part of the problem with Washington. (Cheers, applause.)

When AIG was bailed out, I didn't like it, but I understood it needed to be done to protect hardworking Americans with insurance policies and annuities. Senator Obama didn't take a position. On the biggest issue of the day, he didn't know what to think. He may not realize it, but you don't get to vote present as president of the United States. (Cheers, applause.)

While Senator Obama and congressional leaders don't know what to think about the current crisis, we know what their plans are for the economy. Today, Senator Obama's running mate said that raising taxes is patriotic. (Boos.) Raising taxes in a tough economy isn't patriotic. It's not a badge of honor. It's just plain dumb. (Laughter, cheers, applause.) Billions in tax increases that Senator Obama is proposing would kill even more jobs during tough economic times. I'm not going to let that happen. (Cheers, applause.)

I've seen tough times before and I know how to shake up Wall Street and Washington, and I'll get this economy moving. I'll lead through this crisis by fighting for you. (Cheers, applause.) And when I am president, we'll be stronger than ever before.

Palin on FOX's 'Hannity & Colmes': Transcript (9-17-08)

Read the full transcript(part1). (part 2)

HANNITY: Let's talk about, Governor, obviously, the economy is on the minds of many Americans. We've got Lehman, we've got Merrill, we've got AIG. Senator Barack Obama yesterday was attacking Senator McCain for saying that the "fundamentals of the economy are strong."

Do you believe that the fundamentals of our economy are strong?

PALIN: Well, it was an unfair attack on the verbiage that Senator McCain chose to use because the fundamentals, as he was having to explain afterwards, he means our workforce, he means the ingenuity of the American. And of course, that is strong and that is the foundation of our economy.

So that was an unfair attack there, again, based on verbiage that John McCain used. Certainly it is a mess though, the economy is a mess. And there have been abuses on Wall Street and that adversely affects Main Street.

And it's that commitment that John McCain is articulating today, getting in there, reforming the way that Wall Street has been allowed to work, stopping the abuses and that violation of the public trust that too many CEOs and top management of some of these companies, that abuse there has got to stop.

It is, somebody was saying this morning, a toxic waste there on Wall Street, affecting Main Street. And we've got to cure this.

HANNITY: Through reform?

PALIN: Through reform, absolutely. Look at the oversight that has been lax, I believe, here it's a 1930s type of regulatory regime overseeing some of these corporations. And we've got to get a more coordinated and a much more stringent oversight regime.

Not that government is going to be solely looked to for the answers in all of the problems in Wall Street, but government can play a very, very appropriate role in the oversight as people are trusting these companies with their life savings, with their investments, with their insurance policies and construction bonds and everything else.

When we see the collapse that we're seeing today, you know that something is broke and John McCain has a great plan to get in there and fix it.

[...]HANNITY: Well, you know, both you and Senator McCain supported the bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. You both opposed the bailout of government intervention as it relates to Lehman or Merrill. But now we read this morning that AIG is going to get some type of government bailout.

Was that the right call?

PALIN: Well, you know, first, Fannie and Freddie, different because quasi-government agencies there where government had to step in because of the adverse impacts all across our nation, especially with homeowners. It's just too impacting, we had to step in there.

I do not like the idea though of taxpayers being used to bailout these corporations. Today it was AIG, important call there, though, because of the construction bonds and the insurance carrier duties of AIG. But first and foremost, taxpayers cannot be looked to as the bailout, as the solution to the problems on Wall Street.

McCain's Tampa Speech on the Economy: Transcript (9-16-08)

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If Governor Palin and I are elected in 49 days, we are not going to waste a moment in changing the way Washington does business. And we’re going to start where the need for reform is greatest. In short order, we are going put an end to the reckless conduct, corruption, and unbridled greed that have caused a crisis on Wall Street.

The working people of this state and this nation are the most innovative, the hardest working, the best skilled, most productive, most competitive in the world. This foundation of our economy, the American worker, is strong but it has been put at risk by the greed and mismanagement of Wall Street and Washington. The top of our economy is broken. We have seen self interest, greed, irresponsibility and corruption undermine the hard work of the American people. It is time to set things right, and I promise to get the job done as your president.

Americans put a lot of trust in the bankers and brokerage firms of Wall Street. They depend on the financial service sector to protect their savings, IRA’s, 401k’s, and pension accounts. But many leaders in finance have proven unworthy of that trust. Government has a clear responsibility to act in defense of the public interests, and that is exactly what I intend to do. We are going to make sure that American’s accounts are protected. I pledge that FDIC and SPIC will have all the support they need to fully back the savings of the American people.

Too many people on Wall Street have been recklessly wagering instead of making the sound investments we expected of them. And when their companies collapse, only the CEO’s seem to escape the consequences. While employees, shareholders, and other victims are left with nothing but trouble and debt, the people who helped cause the collapse make off with tens of millions in severance packages. I have spoken out against the excess of corporate executives, and I can assure you that if I am president, we’re not going to tolerate that anymore. In my administration, we’re going to hold people on Wall Street responsible. And we’re going to enact and enforce reforms to make sure that these outrages never happen in the first place.

Too many people on Wall Street have forgotten or disregarded the basic rules of sound finance. In an endless quest for easy money, they dreamed up investment schemes that they themselves don’t even understand. With their derivatives, credit default swaps, and mortgage backed securities they tried to make their own rules. But they could only avoid the basic rules of economics for so long. Now, as their schemes unravel in bankruptcies and collapse, it’s once again the public who is left to bear the costs. And I promise you that on my watch, we are never going to let these kinds of abuses go uncorrected or unpunished.

Obama Speech in Elko, Nevada: Transcript (9-17-08)

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We are in the midst of the most serious financial crisis in generations. Three of America's five largest investment banks have failed or been sold off in distress. Our housing market is in shambles, and Monday brought the worst losses on Wall Street since the day after September 11th. Monday brought the worst losses on Wall Street since the day after September 11th, and today we learned that the Fed had to take unprecedented action to prevent the failure of one of the largest insurance companies in the world from causing an even larger crisis.

While we do not know all the details of the arrangement with AIG, the Federal Reserve must ensure that the plan protects the families that count on insurance. It should bolster our economy's ability to create good-paying jobs and help working Americans pay their bills and save their money. It must not bail out the shareholders or management of AIG.

Everywhere you look, the economic news is troubling. But for so many Americans, it isn't really news at all.

600,000 workers have lost their jobs since January. Home values are falling. Your paycheck doesn't go as far as it used to. It's never been harder to save or retire; to buy gas or groceries; and if you put it on a credit card, they've probably raised your rates. In so many cities and towns across America, it feels as if the dream that so many generations have fought for is slowly slipping away.

I have every confidence that we can steer ourselves out of this crisis. That's who we are. That's what we've always done as Americans.

But the one thing I do know is this - we can't steer ourselves out of this crisis by heading in the same, disastrous direction. And that's what this election is about.

It's been an interesting week for John McCain. It's been really interesting to watch him respond to this economic news. His first reaction to this crisis on Monday was to stand up and repeat the line he's said over and over and over again throughout this campaign - quote - "the fundamentals of our economy are strong."

Now, his campaign must've realized that probably wasn't a smart thing to say on the day of a financial meltdown, so they sent him back out a few hours later to clean up his remarks.

But it sounds like he got a little carried away, because yesterday, John McCain actually said that if he's President, he'll take on the - quote - "ol' boys network" in Washington. I am not making this up. This is someone who's been in Congress for twenty-six years - who put seven of the most powerful Washington lobbyists in charge of his campaign - and now he tells us that he's the one who will take on the ol' boy network. The ol' boy network? In the McCain campaign, that's called a staff meeting.

John McCain went on to say how angry he is at the greedy corporate interests on Wall Street. He's so angry he wants to punish them with $200 billion in tax cuts. And if they're not careful, he'll give them even more tax cuts for shipping our jobs overseas.

I mean, where is he getting these lines? The lobbyists running his campaign? Maybe it's Phil Gramm - the man who was the architect of the de-regulation in Washington that helped cause the mess on Wall Street, who also happens to be the architect of John McCain's economic plan and one of his chief advisors. You remember Phil Gramm - he's the guy who said that we're just going through a "mental recession;" who called the United States of America a "nation of whiners."

McCain on ABC 'Good Morning America': Transcript (9-17-08)

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ROBERTS: You talk about Congress and, of course, you’ve been there in Washington...

J. MCCAIN: Yes. Sure.

ROBERTS: ... for all these many years.

J. MCCAIN: Yes. Yes.

ROBERTS: And you’re saying that a little bit asleep at the switch.

J. MCCAIN: Two years ago I gave a speech and argued on several occasions that Fannie and Freddie were in trouble, that they were carrying out unsafe and unsound and even corrupt practices. And I said this has got to stop.

And I have fought for reform all the time that I’ve been in Congress. I’ve taken on my party; I’ve taken on the other party. I’ve taken on the president.

Senator Obama has never taken on his party on any major issue. This requires a reformer. That’s my record of reform. And we have to fix it, and we will fix it. And it’ll never happen again when I’m president of the United States.

ROBERTS: When you say...

J. MCCAIN: And we’ve got to grow the economy and create jobs. That’s the best way out of this.

ROBERTS: And how do you go about it? Because yesterday when you were talking to Chris Cuomo, you said that you perhaps would form a kind of 9/11 Commission. And talking with folks here, like you did, they said enough with the commissions, enough with the talk, what are the real solutions? What are the, you know, the practical solutions not the talk?

J. MCCAIN: Well, first of all, you need to get the best minds in America together. I mean, this is a crisis. This is one of the most severe crises in modern times. So you got to get the best minds in America together to say, “Look, not only did this happen, but we’ve all got to work together, Republican and Democrat.”

I mean, this calls for bipartisanship. This calls for patriotism.

J. MCCAIN: This calls for saving the economy of the people here, the Lipps family on this farm. They’re the heartland of America.

So, clearly, we have to have transparency, we have to have oversight, we have to combine these regulatory alphabet soup organizations. We have to make them work. They need a chief executive who knows how to crack the whip and knows how to reform Washington and reform the way that we do business, and, frankly, brings these people to account, hold these people to account that are responsible for this. And if many of them broke the law, then maybe some of them should be in jail.

ROBERTS: People hear you saying that and believe in your commitment to wanting to do that, but, Senator, they’re saying if you’re in office, they want something tangible. When they hear that they’re like, what’s the first thing that you will fix? What (inaudible) first thing you will change?

J. MCCAIN: The first thing I’ll fix is make sure that their taxes are not raised. I’ll make sure that they -- available and affordable health insurance. We will grow jobs.

We will get off alternate energy that -- frankly, this family who uses a lot of gasoline. We’ve got to get off that dependence on foreign oil. I know how to do that. (inaudible) I have a concrete plan to fix our economy.

And I’ll make their health insurance affordable and available, a quality education for their kids, and I’ll keep taxes low. They don’t need a tax increase in this very difficult time. And I will be opposed to that and I will make sure that it doesn’t happen.

But we can restore our economy again, but we’ve got to clean up this mess that -- and drain the swamp that’s causing so many problems and having so many innocent bystanders from being harmed by it.

Obama Speech on the Economic Crisis: Transcript (9-16-08)

Obama gave this speech on Tuesday at the Colorado School of Mines (Golden,Colorado). Read the full transcript and see the complete video.

Over the last few days, we have seen clearly what's at stake in this election. The news from Wall Street has shaken the American people's faith in our economy. The situation with Lehman Brothers and other financial institutions is the latest in a wave of crises that have generated tremendous uncertainty about the future of our financial markets. This is a major threat to our economy and its ability to create good-paying jobs and help working Americans pay their bills, save for their future, and make their mortgage payments.

Since this turmoil began over a year ago, the housing market has collapsed. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac had to be effectively taken over by the government. Three of America's five largest investment banks failed or have been sold off in distress. Yesterday, Wall Street suffered its worst losses since just after 9/11. We are in the most serious financial crisis in generations. Yet Senator McCain stood up yesterday and said that the fundamentals of the economy are strong

A few hours later, his campaign sent him back out to clean up his remarks, and he tried to explain himself again this morning by saying that what he meant was that American workers are strong. But we know that Senator McCain meant what he said the first time, because he has said it over and over again throughout this campaign - no fewer than 16 times, according to one independent count.

Now I certainly don't fault Senator McCain for all of the problems we're facing, but I do fault the economic philosophy he subscribes to. Because the truth is, what Senator McCain said yesterday fits with the same economic philosophy that he's had for 26 years. It's the philosophy that says we should give more and more to those with the most and hope that prosperity trickles down. It's the philosophy that says even common-sense regulations are unnecessary and unwise. It's a philosophy that lets Washington lobbyists shred consumer protections and distort our economy so it works for the special interests instead of working people.

We've had this philosophy for eight years. We know the results. You feel it in your own lives. Jobs have disappeared, and peoples' life savings have been put at risk. Millions of families face foreclosure, and millions more have seen their home values plummet. The cost of everything from gas to groceries to health care has gone up, while the dream of a college education for our kids and a secure and dignified retirement for our seniors is slipping away. These are the struggles that Americans are facing. This is the pain that has now trickled up.

McCain, Biden on CBS Early Show: Transcript (9-16-08)

Read the transcript found on Newsbuster.

SMITH: I want to make sure I have this straight now. Yesterday, on the campaign trail, you reiterated that you believe the fundamentals of the economy are strong. At the same time, we understand your campaign is issuing an ad that says the economy is in crisis. Which is it?

MCCAIN: Well, the economy's in crisis. The fundamentals of our economy are the American worker. The American worker is still the most productive and the hardest working, most industrious worker in the world and I'm proud of them. They have been betrayed by Wall Street, by greed, by excess, and by corruption and they have been done a great disservice, but if someone disagrees that American workers aren't the best in the world, we just have a disagreement. Their the fundamentals of our -- the strength of America. But the point is greed, excess, corruption has betrayed them and now we are facing a crisis.

SMITH: And the answer for which is what? Because throughout your campaign, you have said you are anti-regulation. Would not oversight have helped avert this crisis?

MCCAIN: Actually, a little -- two years ago, I warned that the oversight of Fannie and Freddie was, was terrible, that we were facing a crisis because of it, or certainly serious problems, and the fact is that we saw a relationship between Fannie and Freddie and the Congress, as well as the administration, which caused the housing market, obviously, was a great contributor in the housing market collapsing as it has, which was a big factor in the problems we're having today. But the influence that Fannie and Freddie had in the inside the beltway, old boy network, which led to this kind of corruption is unacceptable and I warned about it a couple of years ago. Do I believe in excess government regulation? Yes. But this patchwork quilt of regulation -- regulating bodies is designed for the 1930s when they were invented.

[...]RODRIGUEZ: I'm fine, thank you. Senator McCain just named some of the same culprits that you and Senator Obama blamed for this crisis yesterday, Wall Street greed and excess. And he called for a restructuring of oversight and regulation. You seem to be on the same page.

BIDEN: Well, it seems like John's had an epiphany. 9:00 yesterday morning John thought the economy was going great guns and the Bush Administration is doing well, and today he thinks it's in crisis. And you know, I heard John say that the American people are strong. John ought to come to my old neighborhood and find out that foreclosures are sky high, find out gas and grocery prices are up, find out the middle class people made 2,000 bucks less over this term with the president than they did before he was president. Find out that, in fact, they're in real trouble in terms of their ability to stay in their homes. I mean, I don't understand this. I -- John, quite frankly, confuses me. He was-

McCain Aide Claims Nominee ‘Helped Create’ BlackBerry

Does Senator McCain read the history books? Then he would know that it was the infamous Gore-invented-the-Internet myth that hurt the Democratic nominee in 2000. This is going to stick. Just like McCain's idiotic insistence that the economy is fundamentally sound.

Holtz-Eakin stirred these memories Tuesday as he held up his BlackBerry before reporters and said, “Telecommunications of the United States is a premier innovation in the past 15 years, comes right through the Commerce Committee. So you’re looking at the miracle John McCain helped create, and that’s what he did.”

McCain’s campaign didn’t even try to back it up.

Asked what legislation McCain had worked on that might be used to justify the claim, McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds dismissed the comments by Holtz-Eakin, a former Congressional Budget Office director, as a bad turn at stand-up comedy by an adviser and nothing personally claimed by the candidate.

The reason for this lie is that McCain doesn't have much of a record to brag about as Senator all these years. They have to make it up.

A quick look at McCain’s work as Commerce chairman tells you why. Virtually all of his hearings were about other things: tobacco regulation, the “Y2K” challenge (remember Y2K?), trade with China, climate change, and pet causes such as media ownership and the Air Force’s decision to lease refueling tankers from Boeing. When he dealt with the telecommunications industry, it was usually on broader topics like competition and mergers.

This gaffe follows the statement that will haunt Mr.McCain the most in the days and weeks to come. It is a statement that guarantees that Barack Obama will be elected the next President of the United States.

"You know that there's been tremendous turmoil in our financial markets and Wall St. And it is -- people are frightened by these events. Our economy, I think still -- the fundamentals of our economy are strong. But these are very, very difficult times."

Here is another perpspective:

Then they send his policy advisor out to argue that McCain knows this stuff because he used to be chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce -- and he bogusly claims that McCain is responsible for the creation of the Blackberry. This was widely mocked, such as by a former FCC chairman who points out that the Blackberry is the result of Canadian innovation, and had to be walked back. (Bonus trivia: McCain was replaced as Commerce chair by Ted "Tubes" Stevens. So there's a whole history of telecom expertise there.)

Also, he started using the phrase "enough is enough" as a tag in his speeches and ads, which Obama has been using for a month now. Oh, and as I've been predicting, the travelling press is starting to get pissed that McCain won't, you know, talk to the press.

Obama Interview on "Money and Politics": Transcript (9-15-08)

This interview was done by Bloomberg. Read the full transcript.

MR. COOK: Given what played out on Wall Street today, I've got to ask you your reaction to it. How serious is this situation? How dire a situation? Is it going to be the top priority of the next president?

SEN. OBAMA: Well, I think it's a very serious situation. We don't yet know how it's going to play out this week. But here's what we know. One of the most storied firms on Wall Street is now gone. The fact that Merrill was purchased by Bank of America I think was very helpful because there's no doubt that there might have been a move in the direction of Merrill going under as well. But we still have problems with AIG out there, we still have problems with WAMU. I think that there is enormous amount of uncertainty.

I was pleased to see that sort of the internal plumbing of the trading and systems remain in place, but obviously the stock market took a huge hit and that's an indication of how fragile things are. There's no doubt that there's going to be some credit contraction and all of this will end up having an impact on Main Street, on whether or not businesses can get financing for plants and equipment, whether they're hiring more workers, consumers obviously more uncertain. And it really indicates the degree to which over the last eight years we have not put in place the kind of regulatory frameworks, the transparency and accountability that could have prevented this problem in the first place.

MR. COOK: Well, I want to hear about some of your solutions on that score in just a moment, but let me ask you one basic question that people are asking today. Given the selloff on Wall Street, given the intervention by the federal government just a few months ago at Bear Stearns, do you think it would have been reasonable for the government to do more to help Lehman Brothers avoid the fate that it's now - it's in bankruptcy now?

SEN. OBAMA: Well, you know, I don't want to play Monday morning quarterback because I think that there are a lot of factors involved here. The market had a long time to absorb the problems at Lehman's in a way that it didn't have in Bear Stearns, and the idea that taxpayers can continue to be on the hook for firm after firm after firm I think is a real problem. Whether it's Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac or some of the investment banks, at some level what you had is a situation in which investors and management at these firms were taking extraordinary risks with enormous upside when the market was good, but you can't have a situation where you expect the taxpayer to foot the bill when times are bad. And I think that Secretary Paulson understood that at some point the market it going to have to solve some of these problems.

Now, what I'm much more critical about is the last eight years and the lack of a regulatory framework. I warned a year ago, a year and a half ago, two years ago that what was happening in the subprime lending market was inappropriate, that nobody was looking at whether or not these loans made sense, that in many cases they were pushed into communities that in which workers and homebuyers couldn't support the underlying mortgages, and the fact that we just did not do anything is reminiscent of what happened during the savings and loans crisis. And we've got to recognize that given banks no longer are the largest source of capital on Wall Street, that our regulatory frameworks have to catch up. That's something that we should have dealt with earlier. It's something that I intend to deal with as president.

Crisis: Global Stock Markets Continue Fall

Is anyone saying what needs to be said to stave off disaster? Have Congress, the White House and Wall St. big shots sat down to blue print a crisis plan? Have the presidential candidates stopped talking about tax cuts and called for a full economic war footing to stave off the invasion of depression? There was much more concern and preparedness done in the wake of hurricane Ike. There shouldn't be anything else on TV other the economic crisis. Anna Nicole's death got more coverage that this Wall St. meltdown.

Losses on stock markets have continued after the collapse of fourth largest US investment bank, Lehman Brothers, which has filed for bankruptcy protection.

European stocks fell again; the UK's FTSE 100 was down 4.4%, France's Cac down 2.9% and Germany's Dax down 3.2%.

Shares in Japan, South Korea and Hong Kong fell more than 5%, having been shut on Monday for public holidays.

Lehman, which may be about to sell its core assets to Barclays, is the latest victim of the global credit crunch.

The FTSE 100 of leading UK shares fell 1230 points to 4,975 in early afternoon trade. Banking shares were particularly hard hit, with HBOS shares 35% lower.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 index dropped 5% to a three-year low, shares in South Korea and Hong Kong shed almost 6% in value and Shanghai's index fell by about 3%.

Markets in Taipei and Singapore were also sharply down, and the pattern was repeated in Australia and New Zealand, although the falls were smaller.

The US stock market on Monday had its worst day's trading since 9/11, with the Dow Jones index ending the day down 504.48 points, or 4.42%, at 10,917.51.

Central banks around the world have been carrying out emergency measures on Tuesday to keep markets liquid.

The moves came as the interest rates at which banks lend to each other rocketed - as they did at the start of the credit crunch. This is seen as a sign of falling confidence between the banks.

Overnight sterling Libor increased from 5.5% to 6.8%, and the dollar Libor rate increased from 3.1% to 6.4%.

The Federal Reserve said it was set to make a "large" injection of liquidity to help stressed financial markets[...]

U.S. General Warns of "Fragile" Iraq Security

Despite the claims of some Republicans, including McCain, we are not winning in Iraq.

The new US military commander in Iraq, Lt Gen Ray Odierno, has said that recent security gains there are "fragile and reversible".

He was speaking in Baghdad at a ceremony to replace Gen David Petraeus.

Gen Petraeus, who implemented the "surge" of nearly 30,000 extra US troops in Iraq, is widely credited with driving down levels of violence there.

He has been promoted to oversee operations in Afghanistan and in the Middle East, including Iraq.

He will take up the post as head of the US Central Command in late October, working from its headquarters in Tampa, Florida.

Gen Petraeus handed the command of the 146,000-strong US force at a ceremony in one of Saddam Hussein's former palaces on the outskirts of the capital.

He thanked his troops and hailed his successor as "the perfect man for the job".

Gen Odierno said he was aware of the tough task ahead, adding that the Iraqi people must take charge as "the struggle is theirs to win".

He said: "Iraq is now a different country from the one I had seen first. However, we must realise that these gains are fragile and reversible."

Presiding over the ceremony, the US Secretary of Defence, Robert Gates, said the two generals had formed an "incredible team" while implementing the "surge" plan in 2007.

He said that Gen Odierno, who served as deputy commander in Iraq for 15 months, knew "we are at a pivotal moment where progress remains fragile and caution should be the order of the day".

[...]In a BBC interview before his departure, Gen Petraeus said he would never declare victory in Iraq and that the US still faced a "long struggle" in the country.

When asked if US troops could withdraw from Iraqi cities by the middle of next year, he said that would be "doable".

Mr Bush has announced a cut of 8,000 US troops in Iraq by February - with some 4,500 being sent to Afghanistan.

Joe Biden Michigan Speech Transcript (9-15-08)

Read the full transcript of a speech given today by Democratic VP nominee, Joe Biden.

Eight years ago, a man ran for President who claimed he was different, not a typical Republican. He called himself a reformer. He admitted that his Party, the Republican Party, had been wrong about things from time to time. He promised to work with Democrats and said he'd been doing that for a long time.

That candidate was George W. Bush. Remember that? Remember the promise to reach across the aisle? To change the tone? To restore honor and dignity to the White House?

We saw how that story ends. A record number of home foreclosures. Home values, tumbling. And the disturbing news that the crisis you've been facing on Main Street is now hitting Wall Street, taking down Lehman Brothers and threatening other financial institutions.

We've seen eight straight months of job losses. Nearly 46 million Americans without health insurance. Average incomes down, while the price of everything -- from gas to groceries -- has skyrocketed. A military stretched thin from two wars and multiple deployments.

A nation more polarized than I've ever seen in my career. And a culture in Washington where the very few wealthy and powerful have a seat at the table and everybody else is on the menu.

Eight years later, we have another Republican nominee who's telling us the exact same thing:

This time it will be different, it really will. This time he's going to put country before party, to change the tone, reach across the aisle, change the Republican Party, change the way Washington works.

We've seen this movie before, folks. But as everyone knows, the sequel is always worse than the original.

If we forget this history, we're going to be doomed to repeat it -- with four more just like the last eight, or worse. If you're ready for four more years of George Bush, John McCain is your man.

Just as George Herbert Walker Bush was nicknamed "Bush 41" and his son is known as "Bush 43," John McCain could easily become known as "Bush 44."

The campaign a person runs says everything about the way they'll govern. The McCain-Palin campaign has decided to bet the house on the politics perfected by Karl Rove. Those tactics may be good at squeaking by in an election, but they are bad if you want to lead one nation, indivisible.

I count John McCain as a friend. I've known him since before he was a Senator. If he needed my personal help, I'd go. He served our country bravely, nobly. But America needs more than a great solider, America needs a wise leader.

Take a hard look at the positions John has taken for the past 26 years, on the economy, on health care, on foreign policy, and you'll see why I say that John McCain is just four more years of George Bush. On the issues that you talk about around the kitchen table, Mary's college tuition, the cost of the MRI for mom, heating our home this winter -- John McCain is profoundly out of touch.

Tina Fey as Palin on SNL: Transcript, Video

This is hysterical. If you haven't seen it yet click here (also includes a transcript). (update: video from 2nd Tina Fey as Palin, Amy Poehler as Katie Couric shown skit 9-27-08 or see video at bottom of this page).

FEY/PALIN: Good evening, my fellow Americans. I was so excited when I was told Senator Clinton and I would be addressing you tonight.

POEHLER/CLINTON: And I was told I would be addressing you alone.

FEY/PALIN: Now I know it must be a little bit strange for all of you to see the two of us together. What with me being John McCain’s running mate.

POEHLER/CLINTON: And me being a fervent supporter of Senator Barack Obama, as evidenced by this button.

FEY/PALIN: But tonight we are crossing party lines to address the now very ugly role that sexism is playing in the campaign.

POEHLER/CLINTON: An issue which I am frankly surprised to hear people suddenly care about.

FEY/PALIN: You know, Hillary and I don’t agree on everything…

POEHLER/CLINTON: (OVERLAPPING) Anything. I believe that diplomacy should be the cornerstone of any foreign policy.

FEY/PALIN: And I can see Russia from my house.

POEHLER/CLINTON: I believe global warming is caused by man.

FEY/PALIN: And I believe it’s just God hugging us closer.

POEHLER/CLINTON: I don’t agree with the Bush Doctrine.

FEY/PALIN: I don’t know what that is.

POEHLER/CLINTON: But, Sarah, one thing we can agree on is that sexism can never be allowed to permeate an American election.

FEY/PALIN: So, please, stop photoshopping my head on sexy bikini pictures.

POEHLER/CLINTON: And stop saying I have cankles.

FEY/PALIN: Don’t refer to me as a “MILF.”

POEHLER/CLINTON: And don’t refer to me as a “Flurge.” I Googled what it stands for and I do not like it.

FEY/PALIN: So, we ask reporters and commentators, stop using words that diminish us, like “pretty,” “attractive,” “beautiful.”

POEHLER/CLINTON: “Harpy,” “shrew,” and “boner shrinker.”

FEY/PALIN: While our politics may differ, my friend and I are both very tough ladies. You know it reminds me of a joke we tell in Alaska. What’s the difference—

POEHLER/CLINTON: Lipstick.

FEY/PALIN: …between a hockey mom—

POEHLER/CLINTON: Lipstick.

FEY/PALIN: …and a pitbull?

POEHLER/CLINTON: Lipstick.

FEY/PALIN: (PAUSE) Lipstick. Just look at how far we’ve come. Hillary Clinton, who came so close to the White House. And me, Sarah Palin, who is even closer. Can you believe it, Hillary?

POEHLER/CLINTON: (PAUSE) I cannot.

FEY/PALIN: It’s truly amazing, and I think women everywhere can agree that no matter your politics, it’s time for a woman to make it to the White House.

POEHLER/CLINTON: No! Mine! It’s supposed to be mine! I need to say something. I didn’t want a woman to be President. I wanted to be President, and I just happen to be a woman. And I don’t want to hear you compare your road to the White House to my road to the White House. I scratched and clawed through mud and barbed wire, and you just glided in on a dog sled wearing your pageant sash and your Tina Fey glasses.

FEY/PALIN: What an amazing time we live in. To think that just two years ago, I was a small town mayor of Alaska’s crystal meth capitol. And now I am just one heartbeat away from being President of the United States. It just goes to show that anyone can be President.

- 9-27-08


- Related Posts:

• SNL's Tina Fey Spoofs Palin, VP Debate: Transcript, Video (10-4-08)

Palin solo in Carson City, Nevada: Transcript (9-13-08)

VP nominee Sarah Palin gave a speech by herself in Nevada on Saturday. Read the full transcript.

We're going to take our case for reform, that needed reform in DC to voters of every background in every party -- or no party at all. And with your vote, we're going to Washington, not embracing status- quo-politics-as-usual again, we're going to shake things up! (Cheers, applause.)

John McCain is a guy who has been through a few tough fights before. He wore the uniform of our country for 22 years -- (cheers) -- five of those years as a POW. He's served America in good times and in bad and he, like you, like me, always proud to be an American. (Cheers, applause.)

John McCain knows what it takes to overcome great challenges. And for the job of leading our country and winning the war, he is the only man in this race who's got what it takes. (Cheers, applause.) At a decisive moment in the course of the war, remember it was John McCain who refused to break faith with our troops who have now brought victory in Iraq right within sight! (Cheers, applause.)

And as the mother of one of those troops, that's exactly the kind of man I want as commander in chief. (Cheers, applause.)

I know I'm not the only one, either. I want to applaud our moms over here, the Blue Ribbon moms. Our hearts are united. Thank you so much for serving our country in your special way. Thank you, moms! (Cheers, applause.) Thank you! And our hearts are united.

Nevada, this is a moment when principles and political independence mean a heck of a lot more than a party line. John McCain doesn't run with the Washington herd. He's willing to shake things up in Washington, and that's why we need to take the maverick of the Senate and bring him to the White House! (Cheers, applause.)

Senator McCain has called the two of us a team of mavericks because he knows that we've done some shaking up up there in Alaska. As mayor, I shook up the old system and had to take on the good old boys. I reminded people there that government is not always the answer. In fact, too often, government is the problem! (Cheers, applause.) So we got back to basics, and we put government back on the side of the people.

What we did up there -- I eliminated taxes on personal property, and I eliminated taxes that were hurting our small businesses, like business inventory taxes. (Cheers, applause.) Property taxes were too high. We already had a sales tax. Property taxes were too high, so we cut rates every year that I was in office. And those reforms worked, and our community took off. Wonderful economic indicators of success when you let the people keep their own money! (Cheers, applause.)

As governor then, I brought the same agenda of positive change. We took on the old politics-as-usual in Juneau. The old oil company monopoly that had really controlled our state, we broke it. And the good-old-boy network of lobbyists and special interests that used to run things, whatever they're running now, it's not the state of Alaska! (Cheers, applause.) And nearly half a billion dollars in wasteful, excessive spending, well, that's what vetoes are for. (Cheers, applause.)