U.S. presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama are preparing for their third and final debateon Wednesday, as new polls show Obama, the Democrat, widening his lead over Republican McCain.
Pollsters blame the economic crisis, which erupted last month, for
McCain's decline in support from September to October. A recent Los
Angeles Times-Bloomberg poll of about 15-hundred people (conducted October 10th through 13th) said 50 percent supported Obama and 41 percent were for McCain. Obama's lead in that same poll was smaller last month.
A New York Times-CBS News poll gave Obama's lead as 53 percent to 39 percent for McCain.
A Washington Post-ABC News poll says Obama's lead has increased
dramatically in four key battleground states -- Minnesota, Michigan,
Wisconsin and Colorado.
The margin of error in each poll was three percent.
Today's debate is to be held at Hofstra University in (the northeastern) New York state.
On Tuesday, McCain proposed a nearly 53 billion-dollar plan aimed at helping Americans cope with the financial crisis.
Senator McCain told a rally in (the eastern U.S. state of) Pennsylvania
that his plan would eliminate taxes on unemployment benefits and help
retired workers keep their savings. He said the plan would include tax
cuts that could help create jobs.
Senator Obama introduced his own economic plan Monday. He called, among
other things, for a temporary tax credit for companies that create new
jobs in the United States.