it is very difficult to pin that on McCain since he has been a persistent critic of Bush administration spending.

I disagree with your “persistent critic” claim. McCain certainly hasn’t said much about it in the last year. Mostly because he needs Bush’s support and you don’t get that by criticizing him. I’d be more interested in seeing McCain’s voting record on Bush’s spending proposals.

As far as the economy. Scott Adams (creator of Dilbert) commissioned a survey of economists to evaluate Obama’s and McCain’s economic policies. Obama was favored. the only 2 economic issues McCain scored higher on were “International Trade” and “Reducing Government Waste.”

You can read a summary of the survey here: Econ Policy Summary and you can get a powerpoint presentation of the survey here: Survey