I'd suggest that Obama was "forced" to go to Washington because of the public invitation of the President. I think it would have been politically very bad (and overall bad for the financial fiasco) if he hadn't gone.

And Republican reports say he was able to add some small substance to the discussion - while McCain didn't say much - "under a minute" was the Republican quote I heard. [note: in this atmosphere, I'm listening to those reports about McCain's behavior. If THEY are disparaging, they're more likely to be true]