McCain to comedian: "I will be a candidate for president" (Roundup)

Mar 1, 2007, 7:59 GMT

Washington - US Senator John McCain of Arizona officially announced he is running for president by telling a late-night talk-show host that he will seek the centre-right Republican Party's nomination.

'I am announcing that I will be a candidate for president of the United States,' McCain, 70, told comedian David Letterman, host of the Late Show, on Wednesday.

The declaration brought applause from the audience of the New York-based show, aired around midnight but taped several hours earlier. Letterman, a sarcastic fixture of late-night television for nearly 25 years, known for rarely taking anything seriously, clapped politely with the audience.

McCain, a former US Navy pilot who spent several years as a prisoner of war after being shot down over Vietnam, said that he would give a speech in April to formally declare his candidacy in the November 2008 election.

In 2000, McCain first ran for president, losing the Republican nomination to now-President George W Bush, who will not run again because he is limited to two four-year terms. McCain has long acknowledged his intention to seek the presidency in 2008, and he formed an exploratory committee last year.

His announcement to Letterman recalls the 2003 declaration on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, another late-night talk and comedy programme, by actor Arnold Schwarzenegger of his successful run for governor of California.

McCain is best-known for his support of legislation to limit involvement by independent political campaign groups and more recently for advocating a buildup of US troops to improve security in Iraq.