McCain better for economic growth?

Former Housing Secretary Jack Kemp called on Sen. Obama "to lower taxes during a recession" in a teleconference today. Kemp said he didn't know any economist who advocated "for a tax increase" during such a time.

Kemp also said it was important to "stop the hemorrhaging" of home ownership. He claimed Sen. McCain will help homeowners in default by renegotiating their payments. Senior McCain Advisor Doug Holtz-Eakin said Obama's plan of a "90 day mortgage moratorium" doesn't fix the inherent problem of home ownership.

Holtz-Eakin said he had noticed "daily shifts in the Obama tax plan." He stated that while Obama started his campaign by saying that everyone making under $250,000 would get a tax cut, Obama said recently that only those making under $200,000 would see a tax cut. In addition, Holtz-Eakin said that Sen. Biden claimed that the tax cut would only be given to those making under $150,000.

Virginia Delegate Chris Saxman said in reaction to Obama's tax plan, "I don't want Joe the Plumber's money. I want him to invest."

Speaking about McCain's chances in the battleground state of Virginia, Saxman said that Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, current and former governors of the state, "both ran as centrist democrats." He said
Sen. Obama is not running as a centrist, as evidenced by his plan to raise taxes.

McCain advises Bush administration on next move

Following the House's rejection of the Wall Street bailout bill, Sen. John McCain described a series of steps the administration could take to aid the economy. These suggestions included increasing the insurance for bank deposits to regain lost confidence, allowing the Treasury Department to borrow money and purchase mortgage backed securities, and using the exchange stabilization funds to temporarily support financial institutions while Congress reconvenes.

"All of this is focused on making sure that in the near term our economy continues to do as well as possible, and thus not incur further damage in the credit crunch," said the McCain campaign's Senior Economic Policy Advisor Doug Holtz-Eaken during a telephone conference.

Holtz-Eaken contrasted the goal with Sen. Obama's plan which the campaign claims will endanger the economy by raising taxes on the small businesses that have been a source of new jobs despite the economic downturn and increasing spending by $3 trillion over the next decade.

"I don't know of an economic theory on the face of this earth that would suggest raising tax rates on business, raising tax rates on small business, raising tax rates on investment capital would be a good idea at a time of severe financial strain," said former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Jack Kemp.

"We need a pro-growth stimulus to make sure we don't go into the depth of a deep recession, the likes of which would be caused by raising tax rates on investment capital at exactly the wrong time," said Kemp.