Voters watch candidates closely on bailout

By Matthew Bigg

ATLANTA (Reuters) - Whether by scouring their pension statements or holding off on major purchases, U.S. voters are keeping a wary eye on the turmoil on Wall Street -- and paying equally close attention to the presidential candidates' reactions to it.

Some said the response of Republican candidate John McCain and his rival, Democrat Barack Obama, could determine how they vote in the November 4 election of a successor to U.S. President George W. Bush.

Francis Charfauros, a coffee shop manager in Scottsdale, Arizona, said he was concerned about how the financial crisis would affect his retirement plan.

While his vote is still undecided, he liked the fact that McCain took a break from campaigning to return to Congress. "The past couple of weeks with ... banks going under, Wall Street needing assistance, it's scary. McCain is making it an order of priority and it needs to be," Charfauros said.

McCain, an Arizona senator, said on Thursday he was suspending his campaign and returning to Washington to help with negotiations. He also said the first presidential debate, scheduled to take place on Friday, should be postponed if a deal on the Wall Street bailout had not been reached.

Obama declined to suspend his campaign and did not initially plan an immediate return to Washington, saying it will be part of the president's job to handle more than one thing at a time. The Illinois senator said the debate should go ahead because voters needed to see how the next president would deal with a crisis.

Obama since returned to Washington, at Bush's invitation, for an emergency meeting with McCain and other leaders at 4 p.m.( 2000 GMT) on Thursday.

"I do not think that Mr. McCain is acting in a presidential manner. I believe he is scared of Obama," said Frank Thompson, a voter in Birmingham, Alabama, who said his family was holding off on major purchases because of economic uncertainty.

"INHERIT THE MESS"

U.S. lawmakers neared agreement on a massive financial bailout plan with more protection for taxpayers but turmoil in money markets and a blast of grim economic data raised doubts over whether the plan can staunch a deepening crisis.

Congress hopes to reach a bipartisan consensus on the $700 billion rescue plan before Bush's meeting with the candidates.

"I think the (McCain-Obama) debate is necessary. Whoever wins is going to inherit the mess, so people need to see how they would run the country," said Leonard Emig, 45, an advertising executive in Atlanta and a Democrat.

Like many other voters, he said this week's events had reinforced their views of the candidates, not changed them.

"McCain ... didn't have to suspend his debate with Obama. .... We need insight into what they're going to do with the economy ... McCain is trying to play the game, saying 'the economy is the most important thing' because of the crisis," said Leela Kode, 35, a political independent who works for a futures trading firm in Chicago.

Jennifer Renfroe, a fitness director for an Atlanta gym, said the downturn had directly affected her family and she had dramatically altered her personal finances as a result.