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Republican presidential nominee John McCain fought to distance himself from unpopular President George Bush in the face of attacks from Democrat Barack Obama that he is little different than Bush.
McCain, in an interview on NBC's "Meet the Press" and at a rally in Cedar Falls, also shrugged off opinion polls showing him far behind Obama in the campaign, saying he senses the race is tightening a little more than a week ahead of Election Day on November 4.
"There's nine days to go. We're a few points down," McCain told a boisterous rally in the gymnasium of the University of Northern Iowa on a wind-swept day.
And he gave a strong vote of confidence to his vice presidential running mate Sarah Palin, the Alaska governor who has energized the Republican base but has come under withering criticism on a variety of issues to the extent that many Americans do not consider her ready to be president.
Obama and his campaign have attempted to tie McCain to Bush at every opportunity, citing the Arizona senator's record of voting with the president 90 percent of the time. It is an issue that has dogged McCain throughout the campaign.
Flush with campaign cash, the Obama campaign released a new television advertisement that shows footage of McCain with Bush as the announcer says, "He's out of ideas, out of touch, and out of time."
McCain insisted that while he respects Bush, he has disagreed with him on a number of high-profile issues, such as opposing increased government spending, challenging Bush on his Iraq strategy and demanding tougher action to address climate change.
"Do we share a common philosophy of the Republican Party? Of course. But I've stood up against my party, not just President Bush but others, and I've got the scars to prove it," McCain said.
Obama quickly seized on the statement in remarks prepared for delivery in Denver, saying McCain was "finally giving us a little straight talk, and owning up to the fact that he and George Bush actually have a whole lot in common."
"For eight years, we've seen the Bush-McCain philosophy put our country on the wrong track, and we cannot have another four years that look just like the last eight. It's time for change in Washington, and that's why I'm running for president of the United States," Obama said.
Obama leads in Iowa
Obama leads McCain in national opinion polls and in polls in many battleground states, including Iowa, which Bush won in 2004. A new Courier-Lee Enterprises poll gave Obama a 54 percent to 39% edge in Iowa.
A Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby poll released on Sunday, however, suggested a tightening race overall. It said Obama leads McCain by 49% to 44% among likely US voters in the daily tracking poll.
In this poll Obama's lead has dropped over the last three days after hitting a high of 12 points on Thursday.
Some Republicans have complained that McCain's campaign has seemed to lurch from issue to issue and has put in jeopardy not only Republican attempts to hang on to the White House but also many seats in the US Congress.
"We're doing fine. We have closed in the last week," McCain said, adding that if the trend were to continue, "We'll be up very, very late Election Night."
"I see intensity out there and I see passion, so we're very competitive here and I'm very happy of where we are and I'm proud of the campaign I've run," he said.
McCain's choice of Palin as his running mate was at first welcomed as a boon to his campaign but the scrutiny of her has been tough and some conservatives have said they do not believe she is sufficiently experienced to be a heartbeat away from the presidency.
"I don't defend her. I praise her. She needs no defense," McCain said when asked about Palin.
He said he and Palin do not agree on all issues because both consider themselves "maverick" politicians but that he has no criticism of the way she has conducted herself on the campaign trail.
He dismissed questions about the Republican National Committee's purchase of $150,000 in clothes for her and her large family for wearing if they needed it while campaigning, saying a third of the clothes had been returned and the rest would be donated to charity.
McCain said Palin lives a "frugal life."
"I'm so proud of the way she ignites the crowds. The way she has conducted herself in my view is incredibly admirable," McCain said.
