Statement by Senator McCain On The Economic Rescue Package

ARLINGTON, VA U.S. Senator John McCain today delivered the following statement on the passage of the economic rescue package from Flagstaff, AZ:

"I commend the House of Representatives for coming together to pass the economic rescue bill today. I'm glad I suspended my campaign to go back to Washington to help bring the House Republicans to the table. I believe that the taxpayer protections that have been added have improved the bill.

"This rescue bill is not perfect, and it is an outrage that it's even necessary. But we must stop the damage to our economy done by corrupt and incompetent practices on Wall Street and in Washington.

"The action Congress took today is a tourniquet, not a permanent solution. Our economy is still hurting and further action is needed, and it should not take a crisis to get this Congress to act.

"Washington is still on the wrong track, and we face a stark choice in this election. We can go backwards with job-killing tax hikes, the same old broken partisanship, and out of control spending as Senator Obama would have us do or we can bring real reform to Washington.

"My focus is to reform Washington and put government back on the side of working families with tax relief, modern job training, energy independence, more affordable health care, and policies that get spending under control.

"That's how we're going to get America moving again, and that's exactly what I'm going to do. Thank you and again, I commend the House Republicans for acting in the best interest of our nation."