WASHINGTON (Agencies) - The candidates for the US presidency have attacked each other's plans for the struggling American economy as they campaign for votes in key states, according to a BBC report. Speaking in Florida, Democrat Barack Obama said his Republican rival offered more of the "same failed policies" as President George W Bush. John McCain told US media he was the candidate to listen to on the economy. He has been speaking in Pennsylvania, while Obama has been discussing his rescue plans with state governors. Obama is to take a two-day break from campaigning later this week to visit his sick grandmother in Hawaii. Madelyn Dunham, 85, who helped raise Obama, is said to be seriously ill. BBC North America editor Justin Webb says that despite Obama's substantial lead over his rival, John McCain, his absence will make his staff nervous.  The Illinois senator has the advantage in the polls with two weeks to go until the Nov 4 election, but is not sufficiently far ahead to be confident of victory, our correspondent says. Obama has been meeting the governors of Ohio, Michigan, New Mexico and Colorado in Lake Worth, Florida, to discuss jobs and the economy with business leaders and financial experts. All four states have Democratic governors and all, except Michigan, voted for President George W Bush in 2004. The chief executive of internet giant Google, Eric Schmidt, and former Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker were among those at the economics roundtable. Before the discussion began, Obama addressed the event's audience, telling them that McCain would bring America the "same failed policies" as President Bush.  Obama has been mounting an intensive swing through Florida, where opinion polls suggest he and McCain are in a tight race.  He will move on to Virginia and Indiana, two traditionally Republican-leaning states where he is doing well in the polls, on Wednesday and Thursday before heading to Hawaii to visit his grandmother. On the campaign trail in Pennsylvania, where Obama has the lead in opinion polls, McCain said his rival's economic plan would result in raised taxes. He also questioned his rival's readiness for the White House. "We don't want a president who invites testing from the world at a time when our economy is in crisis and Americans are already fighting in two wars." Earlier in the day he said it was "absolutely not true" that the financial crisis was hurting his campaign.  His comments were in response to reports that earlier this month one of his senior advisers said: "If we keep talking about the economic crisis, we're going to lose." "We're focusing on the economy," McCain insisted. "Listen to me. I'm the candidate, and this campaign is about the economy," he saidtin an  interview show on US network CBS.   Opinion polls suggest voters have more confidence in Obama than McCain to handle the economy. Obama had been due to campaign in the battleground states of Wisconsin and Ohio on Thursday and Friday - both states that analysts say he appears likely to win. Instead he will attend a campaign event in Indianapolis on Thursday before taking a flight to Honolulu. Campaign spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Obama's wife, Michelle, would campaign for her husband in Ohio on Friday. He is expected to resume campaigning on Saturday. Obama's campaign stops in Florida on Monday included a rare joint appearance with his former rival Hillary Clinton. Mrs Clinton urged the crowd of some 50,000 people to "close the deal for Barack Obama", on the day that early voting opened in the state. Obama accused the Republican camp of "ugly" campaigning, keeping his focus on the economy and those in the state who have been hit hard by the mortgage crisis. He had been due to campaign in the battleground states of Wisconsin and Ohio on Thursday and Friday - both states that analysts say he appears likely to win. Instead he will attend a campaign event in Indianapolis on Thursday before taking a flight to Honolulu. Campaign spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Obama's wife, Michelle, would campaign for her husband in Ohio on Friday. He is expected to resume campaigning on Saturday.