LOS ANGELES, Aug. 16 (Xinhua) -- Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said on Saturday that he believed America was "slipping away" and needed someone to get it back on track.

    Speaking at a candidate forum at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest of Orange County near Los Angeles, Obama said: "We've got to make the big decisions but we keep putting them off."

US Democratic presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) is seen on a screen as he answers questions by Pastor Rick Warren at the Civil Forum on the Presidency at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, California, August 16, 2008.(Xinhua/Reuters Photo) Photo Gallery>>>

    Washington is "broken," but "I have the ability to build bridges. I hope I have the opportunity to do that," Obama said.

    Speaking on the same occasion, Republican presidential candidate John McCain said he also can bring the country together and that he can "move across the aisle" between Republicans and Democrats in Congress.

    He said he wants "to inspire a generation of Americans to serve a cause greater than themselves."

    "I've always put my country first," he added. "I'll be the president of every American."

    Referring to marital issues, both candidates said they believed marriage should only be between a man and a woman, but Obama said he believed that was an issue that should be left up to individual states, while McCain said he would support a federal constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage if a court ruled that one state would have to accept same-sex marriages from another state.

    As the two candidates spoke, people against the Iraq war marched outside the event, demanding an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq.

    The protestors caused no problems and no arrests were made, said Jim Amormino of the Orange County Sheriff's Department.

    The event took place under heavy security, with helicopters whirling above and sharpshooters on the roof.

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