Obama refocuses on U.S. economy

LONDON – Barack Obama turned his attention back to the stalled U.S. economy Saturday as he wrapped up an eight-country trip abroad with a stroll through the gardens of 10 Downing St. with British Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

The Democratic presidential nominee-in-waiting said he would not be surprised if his travels had dented his popularity in a nation where economic hardship is the top voter concern.

“We’ve been out of the country for a week,” he told news crews. “People are worried about gas prices. They’re worried about home foreclosures.”

Obama described his talks with foreign leaders as relevant to the U.S. economic downturn. Cooperation with allies in settling conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, he said, could free up money spent by the U.S. military each month on waging war.

“That’s $10 billion, $15 billion that we can’t spend at home to rebuild our economy,” Obama said.

Obama’s trip has drawn criticism from his Republican rival, Sen. John McCain, of Arizona.

“With all the breathless coverage from abroad, and with Sen. Obama now addressing his speeches to ‘the people of the world,’ I’m starting to feel a little left out,” McCain said in an address focused on the domestic economy. “Maybe you are too.”

In London, Obama pointed to McCain’s recent trips to Canada, Mexico and Colombia.

“It doesn’t strike me that we’ve done anything different than what the McCain campaign has done, which is to recognize that part of the job of being president and commander in chief is to forge effective relationships with our allies,” he said.