McCain Talks about His Family During Tour
As Sen. John McCain continues his fight for media attention, he begins his "Service to America" tour today with a speech in Meridian, Mississippi. In the speech he'll talk about his family's long history of service to the country, including a distant ancestor who served on George Washington's staff, according to notes distributed by McCain's communications people.
"I am the son and grandson of admirals. My grandfather was an aviator; my father a submariner. They were my first heroes, and their respect for me has been one of the most lasting ambitions of my life. They gave their lives to their country, and taught me lessons about honor, courage, duty, perseverance and leadership that I didn't fully grasp until later in life, but remembered when I needed them most. I have been an imperfect servant of my country for many years. But I am their son, and they showed me how to love my country, and that has made all the difference for me, my friends, all the difference in the world."
He'll also release a Web-only ad that will appear on news and information sites that continues the focus on his family's service to the country.
But as NPR's Cokie Roberts noted during her conversation with Renee Montagne on Morning Edition, McCain still has a lot of work to do with the Republican base and they might be put off by this general election strategy. Roberts also noted that the lack of media attention means McCain is having trouble raising money. The New York Times reports McCain hasn't been able to attract many of the big donors who gave to the Bush campaign over the past two election cycles.
Here's one reason why McCain wants to talk about his family - The Associated Press reports it's one of the reasons that he's doing so well in the polls.
10:35 AM ET | 03-31-2008 | permalink
