We were trying to juggle our options,'' he said. In Ohio on Saturday, thousands of supporters turned out to see McCain at a market and a university, and in the evening at a Cincinnati bookstore, where 1,000 copies of his book flew off the shelves, and where he stayed until about 8 p.m. to sign every last one of them. And many of the people in these crowds appear not to care about policy or ideology. Sure, McCain is pushing his Republican credentials with more energy than ever lately. But to many of his supporters, all of that is irrelevant.
Character is the thing, they say.
Adams was angered that McCain, who rails against special interests, was pushing for more flights at nearby Reagan Washington National Airport, a move that would benefit America West Airlines, a campaign contributor. McCain has said he favors the flights in the interest of competition, a view Adams does not buy. But for many of the Virginians in the crowd, who had waited over an hour in a chilly drizzle to see McCain, such issues are irrelevant. Stropky said he didn't hold the airport issue against McCain, and thought it had no place in a national election. At rallies like this one, crowds invariably respond most enthusiastically to McCain's claims that he will restore integrity to the White House.