Bush Boosts the Financial Plan — and McCain, Too

John D. McKinnon reports on the White House. Giving a political boost to Republican presidential nominee John McCain as well as his own financial rescue plan, President George W. Bush on Wednesday evening called for a summit meeting on the financial crisis on Thursday to include congressional leaders as well as the two major-party presidential candidates. McCain called for exactly such a meeting on Wednesday afternoon, at the same time he announced he would be suspending his presidential campaign to focus on resolving the financial markets problems. McCain’s moves –- backed up by the White House announcement –- could give him a bit of momentum in voters’ eyes on the question of which candidate is better addressing the financial crisis. That in turn could help him close the advantage that his Democratic rival, Sen. Barack Obama , enjoys with voters on fixing the economy. White House spokesman Tony Fratto said the president called Obama tonight around 7:30 p.m. EDT to invite him to ... (link)