NASHUA, N.H. (Jan. 9)
[“Mac is back” for now. Arizona Senator John McCain clinched first place in New Hampshire’s primary last night after a fourth place finish in Iowa just last week. WATD’s Election 2008 Reporter Shelly Schwartz tells us how New Hampshire voters have given McCain the steam he needs to keep going.]
Victorious in New Hampshire, Republican presidential candidate John McCain has been nicknamed “The Come Back Kid” of this presidential race. Before a rowdy crowd of supporters in the Crown Plaza Hotel in Nashua, McCain recalled the early doubts.
[“When they asked, ‘How are you going to do it? You’re down in the polls. You don’t have the money.’ I told them, ‘I’m going to New Hampshire, and I’m going to tell them the truth.” Senator John McCain.]
As of 10:30 p.m. Tuesday with 63 percent of precincts reporting, McCain won 37 percent of the vote. That put him six points ahead of his biggest threat, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney.
[Crowd chanting]
At polling stations throughout New Hampshire earlier in the day, voters emphasized McCain’s military experience. World War II Veteran Curt Drury of Nashua says McCain is best suited to be commander-in-chief.
[“I have respect for a lot of these people that are running, but they don’t have any military experience. And as a veteran of two wars, at this particular time, it’s very important.” Curt Drury of Nashua]
McCain’s willingness to speak his mind has backfired at times. But physician James Wolcott of Concord says he voted for the senator because of his candidness.
[“He’s going to say things from his heart. That’s important to me. And I have faith in his leadership ability. I have faith in his independence as a thinker and a policy maker. So he has a lot going for him in my mind.” James Wolcott of Concord.]
Senator McCain will fly to Michigan tomorrow to campaign before the next primary election January 15th.
This is Shelly Schwartz, reporting for WATD News, Election 2008, Nashua, New Hampshire.
(Shelly Schwartz, a broadcast journalism major, is covering the New Hampshire primary for WATD Radio in Marshfield, Massachusetts.)
-30-
