September 10, 2008

McCain pledges to fight for reform, support culture of life

WASHINGTON (CNS)—Positioning himself as a Republican outsider, Sen. John McCain pledged to reform politics as usual in the nation’s capital while upholding a culture of life as he began the final two months of the long presidential campaign. Accepting his party’s nomination for president Sept. 4 in St. Paul, Minn., the 72-year-old Arizonan set out to distinguish himself from his Democratic opponent, Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, as the candidate better positioned to achieve prosperity for the country and rebuild America’s faltering status as the world’s leading economic power. McCain also framed his life as one devoted to serving his country. Describing his career in the U.S. Navy, how he was shot down over North Vietnam and his five and a half years as a prisoner of war, McCain explained how he came to realize how much his country meant to him during his captivity as he struggled to recover from the serious injuries suffered in the jet crash. The senator’s 46-minute speech touched on several themes expressed by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ 2007 “Faithful Citizenship” document, which calls for Catholic voters to form their consciences around a variety of social concerns based on Catholic social teaching.