McCain says Fed should stop government bailouts

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain said Friday that the Federal Reserve should stop bailing out failed financial institutions. The Republican presidential hopeful said the US central bank must get back to "its core business of responsibly managing our money supply and inflation." He laid out several recommendations for stabilizing markets in the financial crisis that has rocked Wall Street and taken over the presidential campaign. The Fed engineered an $85 billion takeover of insurance giant American International Group, Inc., this week after seizing control of housing giants Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. McCain said that to help return the US to fiscal solvency, the Fed should instead focus on shoring up the dollar and keeping inflation low. "A strong dollar will reduce energy and food prices," McCain said to applause from the Green Bay Chamber of Commerce in the Midwestern swing state of Wisconsin. "It will stimulate sustainable economic growth and get this economy moving again."