( CNN ) -- Former President Bill Clinton said Thursday he thinks that Barack Obama will win big in the upcoming presidential election . Bill Clinton and Barack Obama chat at Clinton 's Harlem office . `` I predict that Sen. Obama will win and win handily , '' Clinton said when asked his opinion on the state of the race . Obama smiled at Clinton 's prediction , saying , `` There you go , you can take it from the president of the United States . He knows a little something about politics . '' The two men chatted with reporters in a photo-op at Clinton 's Harlem office before sitting down for a private lunch . According to CNN 's average of national polls , John McCain currently holds a 1-point lead over Obama , 46-45 percent . iReport.com : Still undecided ? The poll of polls , released Thursday afternoon , is composed of the following five national general election surveys : Fox News/Opinion Dynamics ( September 8-9 ) , NBC/Wall Street Journal ( September 6-8 ) , American Research Group ( September 6-8 ) , Gallup ( September 8-10 ) , and Diageo/Hotline ( September 8-10 ) . It does not have a sampling error . Clinton is scheduled to campaign for Obama in Florida once he wraps up some business with his Clinton Global Initiative . According to aides , the former president will do a mix of fundraisers and public appearances on behalf of the Democratic ticket throughout the fall . `` We 're putting him to work , '' said Obama . `` I 've agreed to do a substantial number of things , whatever I 'm asked to do , '' Clinton said . Watch Clinton make his prediction » . The image of the two men meeting comes as a relief to many Democrats who have been hoping to put to rest the `` Clinton-Obama rift '' storyline . Both sides agreed a face-to-face meeting with the former president would go a long way toward putting the contentious primary season behind them . Hillary Clinton campaigned for Obama earlier in the week in Florida and will campaign in Ohio this weekend . Obama 's running mate , Joe Biden , spoke Thursday with first responders in Parma , Ohio . He opened up the event by telling everyone he did not plan to talk politics . `` Let 's pull together , let 's say together . This is nothing to do with Democrats , Republicans -- it 's about Americans , '' he said . Obama and McCain also put aside politics Thursday to commemorate the September 11 terrorist attacks . The two appeared together at ground zero in New York City to lay roses at the 9/11 memorial and speak with first responders and family members of victims . They were joined by Cindy McCain and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg . iReport.com : See photos from the scene . Later Thursday , Obama and McCain will share the stage briefly as they appear back-to-back at the ServiceNation Presidential Candidates Forum at Columbia University in New York . Meanwhile , Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin headed home to Alaska after spending the week campaigning with McCain . The pair drew a crowd of more than 20,000 in the sturdily Democratic county of Fairfax , Virginia , on Wednesday . That was their largest crowd to date . After that event , Palin returned home so she could attend her son 's deployment ceremony on Thursday . Track Palin enlisted in the U.S. army exactly one year ago . His brigade is going to Iraq . Watch more on Palin 's return to Alaska » . Later Thursday , Palin will give her first television interview with a national media outlet since being named as McCain 's running mate . The Alaska governor will spend two days with ABC 's Charlie Gibson . The interview will be part sit-down , part walk-and-talk at various locations in Alaska . So far , Palin has taken no questions from reporters traveling with her on the campaign trail . An issue that could come up in the interview is the controversy that emerged this week over her per diem charges as governor . The Washington Post reported Tuesday that Palin had billed the state a per diem for 312 days she spent at home , and requested reimbursement for plane rides and hotel rooms for her husband and children , including a $ 707 room when her daughter accompanied her on a trip to New York to attend a Newsweek forum . The paper noted that officials said the claims were justified under existing state regulations . The McCain campaign said that Palin had reduced yearly travel expenses by roughly 80 percent of the amount spent by predecessor Frank Murkowski . Palin 's spokeswoman Maria Comella said the governor 's top priority was `` creating accountability and transparency in government to root out waste and corruption . '' `` Gov . Palin is obviously expected to travel frequently around the state for community events and to meet with Alaskans . This is part of her job , and it 's reasonable that her travel expenses , which were reduced dramatically from the previous administration , would be covered , '' Comella said in a statement . Palin is expected to rejoin McCain on the trail early next week . CNN 's Sasha Johnson , Dana Bash and Alexander Mooney contributed to this report .
NEW : Barack Obama , John McCain lay roses at ground zero . New polls show both candidates with slim leads in key battleground states . Biden speaks with first responders in Parma , Ohio . Sarah Palin back in Alaska for son 's deployment ceremony .