McCain Paints Ugly Picture, Touts His Experience as Fix

John McCain painted a dismal picture of the economy today at a rally in Virginia, comparing Barack Obama’s solutions to Herbert Hoover’s while declaring himself the right candidate to fix the mess, the Virginian-Pilot reports. McCain also raised the specter of his flailing campaign in an effort to invigorate voters, warning that Barack Obama is “measuring the drapes” at the White House.

McCain’s speech was a pessimistic reality check, the New York Times adds. “Jobs are disappearing,” McCain said. “The cost of health care, your children’s college, gasoline and groceries are rising all the time, with no end in sight.” McCain touted his long years in Washington as the necessary antidote to the crisis. “The next president won’t have time to get used to the office,” he said. (More Election 2008 stories.)