Washington, November 18, SPA -- President-elect Barack Obama and his defeated Republican rival John McCain on Monday pledged a “new era of reform” to solve the U.S. economic crisis, transform energy policy, and safeguard national security. Two weeks after the November 4 election, the two candidates said in a joint statement after talks in Chicago, Illinois that Americans of all political parties wanted their leaders to come together and “change the bad habits of Washington.” The meeting at Obama’s transition headquarters followed his promise of consulting with opponents as the Democratic president-elect drafts his agenda for the next four years, Associated Press reported. “It is in this spirit that we had a productive conversation today about the need to launch a new era of reform where we [confront] government waste and bitter partisanship in Washi, "ton in order to restore trust in government, and bring back prosperity and opportunity for every hard-working American family, " the joint statement said. “We hope to work together in the days and months ahead on critical challenges like solving our financial crisis, creating a new energy economy, and protecting our nation’s security,” Obama and McCain wrote.--SPA www.spa.gov.sa/608706