Barack Obama and John McCain, in a show of unity over the US and world economic crisis, will both attend a meeting with President Bush today to discuss a proposed bailout.

Barack Obama and John McCain, in a show of unity over the US and world economic crisis, will both attend a meeting with President Bush today to discuss a proposed bailout.

The meeting, called by Mr Bush and also to be attended by key congressional leaders, will address a $700 billion plan the administration has proposed to bail out a struggling financial industry.

In a joint statement the two candidates called the proposal flawed but said the effort to protect the US economy must not fail.

The plan, without which Mr Bush warned the US may fall into "a long and painful recession," has met with stiff Congressional opposition from both Democrats and members of Mr Bush's own party, the Republicans.

In a surprise announcement last night, Mr McCain called for the candidates' first debate - due to be held tomorrow in Mississippi - to be delayed in order to address the financial crisis that has hit US and world markets and led the Bush administration to push for the unprecedented government bailout.

Mr McCain also said he would be suspending his campaign to deal with the crisis.

Mr Obama, who seemed taken aback by Mr McCain's suggestion, rejected the call for a delay, saying that whoever wins the November 4 election would be required "to deal with more than one thing at once."

Mr McCain's announcement left the question of whether the first of three presidential debates to be held will go forward, at a time when US voters face increasing economic uncertainty.

During a televised address last night, Mr Bush pushed Congress to approve his bailout, saying that "our entire economy is in danger."

In the 12-minute address, the president said without immediate action by Congress, financial panic might ensue.

"It should be enacted as soon as possible," the president said.

The heart of the plan involves the government buying up sour assets of shaky financial firms in a bid to keep them from going under and to stave off a potentially severe recession.

In their joint statement, Mr McCain and Mr Obama said now is the time to "rise above politics for the good of the country. We cannot risk an economic catastrophe."

But it was apparent that politics would play a role in any ongoing discussion of the economic crisis and whether to hold Friday's debate.

The candidates' conflicting positions arose after they spoke privately about how to facilitate congressional negotiations on the Bush administration's bailout proposal.

But Mr McCain beat Mr Obama to the punch with the first public statement, saying the Bush plan to prop up the financial community seemed headed for defeat and a bipartisan solution was needed urgently.

"It has become clear that no consensus has developed to support the administration's proposal," mr McCain said.

"I do not believe that the plan on the table will pass as it currently stands, and we are running out of time."

But Democratic Congressman Barney Frank, chairman of the House committee shepherding the bailout plan, said all sides were getting close to a deal and accused Mr McCain of "trying to take credit for something that's already happening without him."

Mr Bush, who rarely calls legislative leaders to push priority projects, took the unusual step of calling Mr Obama personally about the meeting.

Obama spokesman Bill Burton said the senator would attend and "will continue to work in a bipartisan spirit and do whatever is necessary to come up with a final solution."

But Mr Obama said earlier in the day that the debate shouldn't be delayed, adding that the American voters needed to hear the candidates' views "now more than ever."

"It's my belief that this is exactly the time when the American people need to hear from the person who, in approximately 40 days, will be responsible for dealing with this mess," he said.