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Cindy McCain Makes Case for Husband
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[September 15, 2007]
LONDONDERRY, N.H. (AP) -- The wife of Republican presidential hopeful John McCain argued on Friday that her husband, a decorated Vietnam War veteran and strong proponent of the Iraq war, has the best credentials to be commander in chief.
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 John McCain continued his "No Surrender" campaign tour in New Hampshire, stopping at a VFW hall where his support for the Iraq conflict found a receptive audience of veterans. Several joined McCain in arguing for patience as well as bemoaning the lost war in Vietnam that they blamed in part on Washington politicians.
Cindy McCain, on crutches from a knee injury, made a personal plea for her husband's candidacy despite memories of how draining his last White House bid was seven years ago.
"I could not, in good conscience, say no to my husband, knowing he is not only the most qualified, has the most character and has the most understanding of this issue," she said. "I couldn't turn my friends over to someone else, quite frankly. ... He's the only one who truly understands what it means to send you men and women into combat and, more importantly, how to bring them home with honor."
The McCains have two sons in uniform.
John McCain, who spent years as a Vietnam POW, delivered his oft-repeated argument that defeat in Iraq was not an option.
"There's one thing worse than an overstressed (National) Guard and reserve and military, and that is a defeated military. There's a lot at stake here," McCain said.
Members of the audience made it clear they agree, filing to a microphone with grim pleas for support.
"What we're doing is important. Things are getting better, day by day," said David Labrie, an Air National Guard member who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. "We're making a difference. It's not an overnight mission. We have to take the long course, especially for the soldiers who have given up so much over there."
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 McCain said similar losses are possible if the U.S. doesn't stand firm against Islamic extremism.
"As I've said many times, we cannot have those sacrifices be in vain," McCain said, pointing to the family of a New Hampshire soldier killed in Iraq.
In a departure from his usual town hall events, McCain's focused exclusively on Iraq during his tour, surrounding himself with veterans and his fellow POWs. Also traveling with McCain has been R. James Woolsey, a former director of the Central Intelligence Agency, who said he has known McCain for 30 years.
"We've got a long, hard fight ahead of us. If a country is in difficulty like that, if it's smart, it does what the British did in May of 1940 and turn to a maverick warrior leader," Woolsey said Thursday, referring to Winston Churchill. "We've got a maverick warrior leader here, and we need him as president."
A Democratic National Committee spokesman said McCain's out-of-touch approach is evident.
"John McCain seems to approach voters and their opinions exactly like he approaches the facts on the war in Iraq: he ignores them," Luis Miranda said.
[Associated Press;
By PHILIP ELLIOTT]
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This
material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or
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