Obama described Republican nominee John McCain and President George W. Bush as out of touch with economic issues that concern average U.S. consumers, and criticized Republicans for not discussing the economy during their nominating convention that ended Thursday in St. Paul, Minn., The (Scranton, Pa.) Time-Tribune reported.

"I don't think they have a sense of what people are going through," Obama said at the Schott North America glass facility in Duryea, Pa.

He pointed to the Labor Department report released Friday that showed 84,000 jobs were lost in August, increasing the total this year to 600,000, and leading to the highest unemployment rate in five years, the Boston Globe reported.

"People are anxious," Obama said.

Obama criticized McCain and Bush for saying the fundamentals of the economy are "strong."

"What's more fundamental than having a job?" Obama asked.