Obama says debate should go on

Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama said Wednesday that the debate with GOP nominee John McCain should go forward. 

Sen. Obama (Ill.) responded to Sen. McCain’s (Ariz.) proposal to postpone the debate and suspend campaigning so that the candidates could focus on helping Congress reach a solution on a massive Wall Street bailout plan.

{mosads}“It’s my belief that this 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,” Obama told reporters. “And I think that it is going to be part of the president’s job to deal with more than one thing at once.”

The Democrat added he was in constant contact with congressional leaders and the Bush administration on the financial crisis.

“What I think is important, though, is that we don’t suddenly infuse Capitol Hill with presidential politics at a time when we're in the middle of some very delicate and difficult negotiations,” Obama stated. “So, you know, I think the message is, if you need us, if I can be helpful, I'm prepared to be there at any point.”

He also noted “Democrats and Republicans need to come together to help to stabilize the economy.”

However, Obama also offered veiled criticism of McCain in describing the timeline of events Wednesday and indicating that the Arizona senator had gone public at a time when both candidates had pledged to work together on a joint statement.

“I called him this morning with the intent of issuing a joint statement. I got called back around 2:30. We had a conversation. I made the suggestion to him; he agreed to that suggestion. He then suggested in addition that we need to have a meeting in Washington with the congressional leaders and potentially the president,” Obama said.

“And what I told him was, well, why don't we get the joint statement out first to enunciate the principles that both of us agree to and to send a clear signal to the members of Congress that this, in fact, is something that should not be bogged down by partisan politics?” Obama added. “And when I got back to the hotel, he had gone on television to announce what he intended to do.”

“I think probably my assumption was, was that the joint statement would go out initially,” Obama said.