McCain urges against one-party rule

Sen. John McCain made his case to be president Saturday by saying he would prevent Sen. Barack Obama and Democrats from running a one-party government.

"Now Sen. Obama wants you to believe that things will get better if Democrats control both the Congress and the presidency," said Sen. McCain (Ariz.), the Republican nominee for president, in his campaign's weekly radio address. "But when Americans demand change in Washington, one-party rule where power is an end of itself isn't exactly what they have in mind."

{mosads}Throughout the summer, McCain (R-Ariz.) has focused his criticism on Obama (Ill.), his Democratic opponent, portraying him as a celebrity who isn't ready to lead. But with 53 days left until the election, the Republican also went after the Democratic-led Congress by saying its members are blocking real reform.

His attack came one day after Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) indicated on the Senate floor that McCain lacks the temperament to be president.

"Sen. Obama has gone out of his way to support his party leadership," McCain said. "But to really fight for change in Washington, you have to know just who you're taking on, and Sen. Obama just doesn't get it. The problem in Washington is not Republicans, and the problem is not Democrats. The problem with Washington is that too many people are working for themselves and not working for you."

McCain's message about Congress comes as he has pulled ahead of Obama in several national polls and as a new Gallup poll showed House Republican candidates faring better against Democrats than in any previous poll taken this year.

McCain leads Obama 47 percent to 45 percent according to the RealClearPolitics average of national surveys. In the Gallup poll released Friday that asked registered voters which party they would vote for in House races, Democrats came out ahead of Republicans, 48 percent to 45 percent. But Democrats had double-digit leads in Gallup's previous congressional surveys.

McCain criticized Congress for wanting to increase federal spending and the tax burden, and for failing to do enough to block earmark projects.

"Meanwhile, hard questions are deferred and serious problems are avoided — the great challenges of energy independence, health care reform, protecting entitlements, education reform, and many others," he said. "This Congress has been in session close to two years and now they have accomplished exactly nothing to meet any of these challenges."

McCain also said that he and his running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R), represent real reform, echoing the theme of his convention speech.

"Gov. Sarah Palin and I not only promise big change in Washington — we have records of change to back up our words," he said. "We offer not only change you can believe in, but change you can verify. We'll get the job of reform done — to shake things up in Washington, solve our energy problems, and get the American economy moving again."

Attempts to reach the Obama campaign were unsuccessful.

On Friday, Reid raised his criticism of McCain to a new level, lumping his Senate colleague together with Bush and drawing a clear distinction between them and Obama.

“Our dangerous world calls for leaders with sound judgment, not those with a temperament prone to recklessness,” Reid said. “Our country deserves more than token shifts and lip service to change. We need to take decisive action to reverse eight years of foreign policy mistakes. That’s exactly what Sen. Obama and Senate Democrats offer.”