WASHINGTON (AP) — Rescue: To help someone or something out of a dangerous, harmful or unpleasant situation.

Bailout: To help a person or organisation that is in difficulty, usually by giving or lending them money.

Source: Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

US president Bush's plan to spend $700 billion to bail out — or rescue — the financial industry is the latest in which politicians believe controlling the word used to describe an issue is to control the issue.

As the Bush administration and congressional leaders yesterday hunted for ways to resuscitate the legislation, which the House defeated a day earlier, it was clear that "bailout" had acquired a negative connotation. "Bailout" left a taste of undeserved federal largesse, while "rescue" seemed to have a nobler ring to it, the politicians appeared to be saying.

John McCain, the Republican presidential candidate, began yesterday by saying on CNN, "The first thing I would do is say, 'Let's not call it a bailout. Let's call it a rescue."'

A statement a bit later by Democratic nominee Barack Obama on the package used "rescue" six times, and never mentioned "bailout."

That didn't stop the Republican National Committee from using "bailout" in a new television ad attacking Obama. It accused the Democrat of wanting to spend an additional $1 trillion to help Wall Street that would "bail them out with — you guessed it — our money."

Recent political battles have seen Republicans use "death tax" for the estate tax and engage in arguments over whether abortions eliminate a foetus or unborn baby.