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McCain complained that the Democratic nominee had added a work
requirement to his proposal to grant a 10 percent universal
mortgage credit. A top Obama aide said the campaign made the change
two weeks ago to avoid charges the proposal provided "welfare" to
the unemployed.


      "Thirteen days to go in this election and he changed his tax
plan because the American people had learned the truth about it and
they didn't like it," he told several thousand at an evening rally
here. "My friends, that's just another example that he'll say
anything to get elected."


      An Obama spokesman accused McCain of distortion and said the
Illinois senator's plan always included a work requirement,
although it was discussed only within the campaign or with
reporters who asked about the particulars of the plan.


      "Last week, Sen. McCain called Obama's tax cuts for working
people welfare. Today he's claiming Sen. Obama doesn't do enough to
help the unemployed," said Obama spokesman Tommy Vietor. "The
only thing consistent about these attacks is how dishonest they
are. All of Sen. Obama's tax credits only go to workers and they
always have."


      While criticizing Obama, McCain also targeted his own party. The
Arizona senator complained that the Bush administration was not yet
buying up mortgages so homeowners facing foreclosure could
renegotiate them at more favorable interest rates. McCain has
proposed a $300 billion plan, but a similar one is included in the
recently enacted $700 billion Wall Street bailout. Both McCain and
Obama voted for that plan.


      "I call on the administration to act now and buy up these
mortgages and keep people in their homes," the GOP nominee said
during a morning rally in Ormond Beach. Singling out Treasury
Secretary Henry Paulson, he added: "And why is the secretary of
the Treasury not ordering them to do that?"


      The attacks came amid signs McCain was curtailing his effort in
Colorado, despite plans for two stops there Friday.


      Republicans have slashed television advertising for McCain at
the state's three largest stations, according to the Denver Post.
With early voting under way, McCain's campaign bought a total
$305,550 worth of ads this week at KUSA-TV, KCNC-TV and KMGH-TV.
That was down 46 percent from last week and down 56 percent from
two weeks ago.


      Obama is spending almost seven times what McCain is at those
stations in the final days, the Post reported.


      McCain repeatedly hit Obama and the administration throughout a
300-mile, 11-hour bus tour targeting blue-collar Florida workers
like the Ohio plumber, Joe Wurzelbacher. He's become the central
thematic element in speeches by McCain and his running mate, Alaska
Gov. Sarah Palin, since accusing Obama of fostering tax plans that
would keep him from buying the two-man company where he works.


      From Daytona Beach on Florida's Atlantic Coast to Sarasota on
the Gulf Coast, McCain contrasted Obama's plans with his own
proposals to cut taxes for individuals and businesses. After a stop
at All Star Building Materials in coastal Ormond Beach, he visited
an Altamonte Springs dentist who said he faced the prospect of
layoffs, ate lunch at a Latino restaurant in Orlando and strawberry
shortcake at a farm in Plant City.


      He ended the day at a fairgrounds in Sarasota. He cited 15,000
new jobless claims and said, "Sen. Obama's tax increases would put
even more people out of work."


      McCain also raised the specter of a Democratic White House on
top of Democratic majorities in the House and Senate.


      "You know, my friends, you got (Senate Majority Leader) Harry
Reid and (House Speaker) Nancy Pelosi and Barack Obama, you got a
recipe for tax-and-spend, tax-and-spend, tax-and-spend," he said.


      McCain's route covered the vote-rich "I-4 Corridor" through
Orlando, in central Florida. While George W. Bush the state in 2000
and 2004, Obama is threatening to seize it despite a strong GOP
machine and the Arizona senator's endorsement by Gov. Charlie
Crist.


      Florida offers 27 electoral votes, fourth-most in the country. A
total of 270 is needed to win the presidency.


      Recent polls show Obama, a first-term senator from Illinois,
with a slight lead over McCain. Nationally, an Associated Press-GfK
poll shows McCain and Obama essentially even among likely voters,
possible evidence of a tightened race 12 days before the Nov. 4
election.

Gallery

Black voters say issues draw them to Obama

Former GOP Gov. Arne Carlson endorses Obama

Polls: Obama leads McCain in Wisconsin by double digits

Slideshow: On the campaign trail

Politics and Government News

Republican John McCain on Thursday spiced
up a cross-state bus tour aimed at keeping Florida from swinging to
the Democrats by accusing rival Barack Obama of saying "anything
to get elected."

John McCain speaking to a crowd in Florida

ROBYN BECK/AFP/Getty Images

John McCain and Gov. Charlie Crist of Florida

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

John McCain campaigns in Ohio with Sarah Palin

McCain says Obama will 'say anything' to win

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