Veterans group plans ad campaign touting Iraq war

WASHINGTON (AP) - Republican John McCain, who has made support for President Bush's troop buildup in Iraq the centerpiece of his presidential campaign, is getting from help from veterans that's launching a national TV ad campaign next week. Vets for Freedom is spending $1.5 million on ads that will run on national cable television and in five states in July _ the first set of ads in a multimillion dollar campaign in coming months touting the troop buildup, Pete Hegseth, the 25,000-member group's chairman, said in a telephone interview Saturday. Aimed at "informing the American people about the truth regarding progress in Iraq and Afghanistan," the issue ads will feature veterans of the war describing the accomplishments they've seen since the buildup began in early 2007. "We need to finish the job no matter who is president,"... [read full story]