SEPARATING THE SPIN FROM THE SUBSTANCE!

Just as he had suspended pompous activities lined up for Day 1 of the Republican National Convention last September 1 to respond to any emergency posted by a hurricane, Senator John McCain is now suspending his campaign to focus on helping solve the US financial crisis.

The first presidential debate was scheduled for Friday, September 26 in Mississippi, but McCain practically threw the campaign into turmoil Wednesday by calling for a delay in the debate to try to forge a Wall Street rescue plan.

He is expected to return to Washington Thursday to try to help negotiations over a stalled $700 billion bailout plan for Wall Street.  Americans are generally skeptical about bailing out Wall Street with a plan that would cost the United States more than it put into the Iraq war, and with the economy hurting citizens at the level of bare essentials, the bailout plan is getting attacks from everywhere.

McCain urged Senator Barack Obama to join him in trying to reach a consensus agreement by Monday.  Obama, however, said he saw no reason the debate could not proceed on Friday, adding that it is exactly the “time when the American people need to hear from the person who in approximately 40 days will be responsible for dealing with this mess”.

Simply put, we ask… should they talk or act?   Here were are, before an arena where both White-House hopefuls are about to show off their expertise: Talk the talk… or Walk the walk!?

When high-profile politics and a staggering economy mix, you get a clear picture of the resulting panic.

It was not too long ago when the Democrats had to crack their heads looking for ways to cut the Republican lead that had obviously resulted from the naming of Sarah Palin as Senator McCain’s running mate.

The Palin pick so enhanced the Republican Party’s image that by Sept. 12, the GOP had narrowed the gap to a slender three-point margin based on Gallup Polls.

And then came the crisis on Wall Street.   Daily headlines about the financial crisis have once again shaken voters’ confidence in the country’s economic situation, and unwittingly revived the appeal of Obama’s call for “Change.”

Although there were slight differences among the various polls, the overall trend was clear: McCain, who led nearly every survey taken Sept. 5-11, now trailed in nearly every poll taken thereafter, resulting in a 5-point shift towards Obama in the Real Clear Politics average.  As of Sept 22, the national average had Obama leading by 2 points at 47.60 over McCain’s 45.60.

Understandably, the staggering economy did hurt the Republicans, partly due to a two-term Republican in the White House, and partly because in the minds of voters, the GOP is closely identified with big business.  Then again, Senator Obama is still largely perceived as poorly poised to handle the current crisis.

As Wall Street grapples with a meltdown, presidential bets John McCain and Barack Obama seem to have switched sides, at least on the issue of whether or not the Bush administration was doing the right thing about the economic crisis.

Friday’s polls showed the presidential race had tightened, even on the question of who can best handle the economy.  Real Clear Politics’ national average finds Obama gaining a 1.9 lead at 47.3 over McCain’s 45.4.

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