Obama trades patriotic fire with McCain at VFW

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Obama trades patriotic fire with McCain

ORLANDO, Florida (AFP) — Democrat Barack Obama Tuesday waged a counter-offensive on John McCain's stinging attacks on his patriotism, redoubling a rhetorical barrage ahead of announcing his choice of running mate.

The Illinois senator addressed the annual convention here of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), a day after his Republican White House rival spoke to the group and berated the Democrat for embracing "retreat and failure" in Iraq.

"If we think that we can secure our country by just talking tough without acting tough and smart, then we will misunderstand this moment and miss its opportunities," Obama said.

"If we think that we can use the same partisan playbook where we just challenge our opponent's patriotism to win an election, then the American people will lose. The times are too serious for this kind of politics."

Vietnam War veteran McCain, Obama said, had served the United States "honorably" and had correctly told the VFW that one of the chief criteria for US voters in choosing a commander-in-chief was good judgment.

"But instead of just offering policy answers, he turned to a typical laundry list of political attacks. He said that I have changed my position on Iraq when I have not," the Illinois senator said.

"And he declared, 'Behind all of these claims and positions by Senator Obama lies the ambition to be president' -- suggesting, as he has so many times, that I put personal ambition before my country," Obama said.

"That is John McCain's prerogative. He can run that kind of campaign, and frankly, that's how political campaigns have been run in recent years. But I believe the American people are better than that.

"I believe that this defining moment demands something more of us."

Obama insisted that political action was needed by Iraq's government to match the security progress under a US military "surge," and reaffirmed his threats of international isolation for Russia over its incursion into Georgia.

The Democrat said he was "proud to join my friend, Senator Joe Biden, in calling for an additional one billion dollars in reconstruction assistance for the people of Georgia."

Biden, a foreign policy veteran who is a leading contender to be named Obama's vice presidential running mate, is just back from a trip to Georgia where he warned of "consequences" for Moscow over its actions in the Caucasus.

The New York Times reported late Monday that Obama, in the run-up to next week's Democratic convention, had narrowed down his VP search to Virginia Governor Tim Kaine, Indiana Senator Evan Bayh and Biden.

Obama could reveal his choice for a number two as early as Wednesday, the report said, but aides to the Democrat put up a wall of silence after promising to divulge the news to supporters with a blitz of emails and text messages.

At the VFW convention, held as Tropical Storm Fay drenched Florida with torrential rain, Obama said there was no time for hyper-partisan attacks in a tense period for foreign policy.

Obama drew polite applause during his speech, especially for remarking that the US military was overstretched by the Iraq war and with his call for more attentive care to the mental-health and financial needs of veterans.

A new Gallup poll Tuesday said McCain leads Obama by a hefty 56 percent to 34 percent among registered voters who have served in the US military.

"Unlike Barack Obama, John McCain doesn't have to compensate for a lack of credibility on the international stage with inflammatory and public threats against American allies," McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds said.

In his speech, Obama mocked McCain for vowing to pursue Al-Qaeda mastermind Osama bin Laden to the "gates of hell" but not onto Pakistani soil without the permission of the Islamabad government.

"The American people know that John McCain will hunt down terrorists wherever they are, and have a choice between strength and experience versus Barack Obama's rhetoric and theatrics," Bounds said.

Another poll by Quinnipiac University said US voters believe by a two-to-one margin that McCain is better qualified than Obama to deal with a resurgent Russia.

The survey also found McCain gaining on his Democratic rival in the national race, in which he now trails by 47 percent to 42 percent overall just ahead of the convention season, compared to a 50-41 percent margin in July.