Obama calls for financial regulations, stimulus
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama proposed greater government regulation of the U.S. financial system and a new $30 billion economic stimulus plan on Thursday in response to the housing crisis.
Both Obama and his Democratic rival, New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, accused Republican candidate John McCain of supporting little to ease the current credit and housing problems, which drew a quick response from the McCain camp.
The focus on the economy mirrors its pressing importance for Americans. A Pew Research Center poll said people are as negative as they were during the recession of the early 1990s, with just 11 percent rating the economy as excellent or good.
Obama said under Republican and Democratic administrations — a slap at Clinton’s husband, 1990s Democratic President Bill Clinton — an era of financial deregulation created conditions that pushed the U.S. economy to the brink of a new recession.