Barack Obama has described the Bush government’s proposed $700 billion dollar financial bailout as coming with a “staggering price tag” and told voters in North Carolina over the weekend that a Democratic government wouldn’t write a “black check” to stabilise the market.

The New York Times’ The Caucus blog reports Obama saying any rescue plan needed to include new regulations of the financial system:

“In his first public remarks about the $700 billion proposal that the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve presented to Congressional leaders, Mr. Obama offered qualified support for the bailout. Until complete details emerge this week on Capitol Hill, aides said, Mr. Obama would not render a final judgment. But he said any plan had to include protections for taxpayers and assistance for homeowners at risk of losing their property.”

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