Democrat Barack Obama has warned that a presidency under John McCain would mean four more years of failed Republican policies and broken politics.
The Illinois senator, concluding a two-day trip through the Western battlegrounds of Nevada, New Mexico and Colorado, renewed his favourite theme - that Mr McCain represents another term for Republican President George W. Bush.
"We're not going to let George Bush pass the torch to John McCain," Mr Obama told audience estimated by Denver police at more than 100,000 - the biggest crowd in a campaign that has already set records for fund-raising.
The gathering jammed a downtown Denver park and filled the steps of the Colorado state capital building.
"Just this morning, Senator McCain said that he and President Bush 'share a common philosophy,'" Mr Obama told the crowd. "I guess that was John McCain finally giving us a little straight talk."
He repeated the criticism at a later rally in Fort Collins, where about 50,000 supporters filled a campus yard at Colorado State University.
He said "the Bush-McCain philosophy" benefited the rich and promised the wealth would trickle down to everyone else. He noted Mr Bush had voted for Mr McCain last week.
"Well, Colorado, George Bush isn't the only one who gets to vote early - you can vote early too. And you can finally put an end to the Bush-McCain philosophy," Mr Mr Obama said.
The Democratic candidate leads McCain in national opinion polls nine days before the November 4th election, and he is hoping to secure Colorado's nine electoral votes. Colorado is one of about a dozen states won by Mr Bush in 2004 that Mr McCain is struggling to defend.
Reuters