In First Debate, Candidates Quarrel On Iraq, Express Optimism for Bailout

The Republican nominee said bipartisanship would carry the day. "We have finally seen Republicans and Democrats sitting down and negotiating together and coming up with a package," McCain said.

Obama laid out his own priorities for the federal bailout plan before training his fire on McCain, linking him to the unpopular president.

"We also have to recognize that this is a final verdict on eight years of failed economic policies promoted by George Bush, supported by Senator McCain, a theory that basically says that we can shred regulations and consumer protections and give more and more to the most and somehow prosperity will trickle down," he said.

McCain said Obama would bring higher taxes and more spending to the White House at a time when the country could ill afford them, and mocked his assertions that he could bring bipartisanship to Washington. "Senator Obama has the most liberal voting record in the Senate," McCain said. "It's hard to reach across the aisle from that far to the left."

Although McCain has spoken critically of the bailout, and worked with House conservatives who objected to the original White House plan, he told moderator Jim Lehrer that he is likely to vote for the plan.

"Sure, sure," he responded, when the PBS host pressed him on his stance on the bailout.

Both declined to acknowledge that the package's estimated $700 billion cost would force them to radically alter their own spending plans.

After more than half an hour, Lehrer steered the debate to foreign policy. The two candidates had an emotional exchange over the bracelets they each wear in memory of U.S. soldiers who died in Iraq, underscoring the deep divide created by the war.

"He was 22 years old and he was killed in combat outside of Baghdad, Matthew Stanley, before Christmas last year. This was last August, a year ago. And I said, 'I will -- I will wear his bracelet with honor,' " McCain said, recounting a conversation with Stanley's mother. "And then she said, 'But Senator McCain, I want you to do everything -- promise me one thing, that you'll do everything in your power to make sure that my son's death was not in vain.' "

Obama responded by relating the story of Sgt. Ryan D. Jopek, whose bracelet he wears. Jopek's mother gave it to Obama when they met in Green Bay, Wis. "She asked me, 'Can you please make sure another mother is not going through what I'm going through?' " Obama said.

The format of the debate was designed to encourage a free exchange between the candidates, but for most of the session they spoke to Lehrer, who was seated at a desk between the lecterns, as opposed to each other.

At one point, when Obama derided McCain for proclaiming last week that "the fundamentals of the economy are strong," Lehrer urged him, "Say it directly to him." Obama responded, "Well, John, 10 days ago, you said the fundamentals of the economy are sound." McCain, 72, shot back to Lehrer, joking about his age, "Are you afraid I couldn't hear him?"

But there were few light moments in the 90-minute session. McCain repeatedly cast Obama as naive, while the Democrat sought to link his opponent to the highly unpopular president, especially on the economy and Iraq policy. At the end, McCain stated unequivocally that "I honestly don't believe that Senator Obama has the knowledge or experience" to be president.

McCain announced that he would return to Washington in the early hours of Saturday morning to resume negotiations on the bailout plan. As of late Friday, Obama was still planning to attend campaign rallies on Saturday in Greensboro, N.C., and Fredericksburg, Va., and to speak to the Congressional Black Caucus at a dinner in Washington on Saturday night.

McCain and Obama are slated to meet two more times in the coming weeks, with debates scheduled for Oct. 7 in Nashville and Oct. 15 at Hofstra University in New York. The vice presidential candidates, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr., are scheduled to debate Thursday in St. Louis.