By John Shovelan and wires Republican presidential nominee John McCain has promised to set up a commission to investigate the cause of the US financial crisis if he is elected to power.
This morning troubled US insurance giant American International Group (AIG) said it was trying to raise up to $100 billion in short-term loans to stave off a liquidity crisis which threatens to make it the latest victim of the ongoing credit crunch.
Both Senator McCain and Democrat rival Barack Obama are proposing increased regulation of financial markets in the wake of the subprime crisis.
Speaking in Tampa, Florida, Senator McCain said America needed a "9/11"-style commission into Wall Street's behaviour.
He denounced the "recklessness of Wall Street" and said his administration would put an end to the "corruption and unbridled greed" that have damaged the US economy.
"People have a right to know when their jobs, pensions, investments, and our whole economy are being put at risked by the recklessness of Wall Street," said the senator from Arizona.
"Government has a clear responsibility to act in defense of the public interests," he said, before lambasting the "excesses of corporate executives."
"I can assure you that if I am president, we're not going to tolerate that anymore. In my administration, we're going to hold people on Wall Street responsible," McCain promised.
"Too many people on Wall Street have forgotten or disregarded the basic rules of sound finance."
Senator Obama accused the Republican candidate of simply passing the buck.
"This isn't 9/11. We know how we got into this mess. What we need now is leadership to get us out."
Senator Obama linked Senator McCain to a 1999 law that allowed banks, investment houses and insurance firms to engage in each others' businesses.
