Voters worry about economy, eye election choices

CINCINNATI (Reuters) - U.S. voters greeted news of another Wall Street bailout on Wednesday with anger, anxiety and resignation -- and mixed opinions as to whether either presidential candidate can fix the financial mess.

As global markets absorbed Tuesday's surprise $85 billion rescue of insurer American International Group by the U.S. Federal Reserve and White House hopefuls Barack Obama and John McCain scrambled to craft a campaign response, ordinary Americans worried about the future.

"It's not quite panic in the streets, but who knows when the market is going to correct itself?" said Dan Wiggins, a part-time consultant in Cincinnati, as he sipped a morning coffee at Starbucks. "I'm definitely worried."

A day of new losses on Wall Street and banner headlines about the nation's financial turmoil left voters debating the wisdom of the AIG bailout and the safety of their investments.

Wiggins, a lifelong Republican, said he didn't understand why the government was rushing in to save some companies but letting others fail -- and he wasn't convinced either Democrat Obama or Republican McCain was capable of helping.

"Too many politicians want to fix problems they created," said Wiggins, 58. "I don't know what I'm going to do in November. I might not vote."

In Detroit, computer assisted design technician Mandi Spence said the government was wrong to rescue AIG.

"I don't like that they do that. As a company, you take the big risks, that's part of life. They shouldn't bail them out. Let them fail," said Spence, 29.

In Phoenix, cell phone company manager Moses Zonana blamed "greed and the over-extension of credit" for the meltdown but backed the AIG bailout. He said Obama, a first-term senator, would have an upper hand over long-time Arizona Sen. McCain in dealing with the crisis.

"Obama is more of an academic ... He will understand better how to deal with these types of problems," Zonana said.

ILL-EQUIPPED

But Bob Fitzpatrick, a retired manager from Salomon Brothers also interviewed in Phoenix, did not think either candidate knew how to handle the crisis.

"McCain and Obama are ill equipped, both of them. To people in the business it's obvious," Fitzpatrick said.

"The problem is there are too few people in government or the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) who really understand what goes on in the financial markets."

On the campaign trail, Obama and McCain remained neck-and-neck in opinion polls as they tried to take the upper hand on economic issues that promise to dominate the political debate until the November 4 presidential election.

While McCain has been criticized as out of touch for saying economic fundamentals were strong, Obama has struggled to connect with working class voters.

In Chicago, office worker Sonja Robertson summed up the feelings of many when she said the bailout of AIG was probably necessary to preserve jobs, but that the money could have been spent on other things -- like health care and education.

And Robertson wasn't sure which presidential hopeful could be counted on to improve the situation.

"Big business and Republicans go hand in hand. So, if you look at it from that perspective, McCain might be better. I'm quite sure a Democrat like Obama would feel the funds could go to something else, to working people," said Robertson, 36.

In New York City, personal banker Ami Sasson said he supported the AIG bailout because it probably saved the country from a depression. But Sasson said it was vital the next president improve regulation so it doesn't happen again.

"Any president can speak about the economy, but you have to have regulations with Congress. If they don't regulate it, we're going to be in the same boat," said Sasson.

Across the country, many randomly interviewed Americans said they were just plain worried about the nation's economy -- and their own investments and savings.

"I'm supposed to retire in a year and I'm wondering how the investments are going -- if we'll have enough cash and whether money's still left, stocks and all," said electrician Pat Stiller, 49, stopping briefly from his work repairing a traffic signal box in downtown Detroit during the lunch hour.

(Additional reporting by Tim Gaynor, Andrew Stern, Christian Wiessner and Ben Klayman; Editing by David Storey)