United States Naval Academy

As Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) spoke at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis this morning, representatives from the state’s Democratic and Republican parties were eager to discuss McCain’s chances of winning Maryland in November.

While Al Gore and John Kerry carried the state by a 15-point average in the last two election cycles, John Flynn, the executive director of the Maryland Republican Party, said this year’s presumptive GOP nominee has a “very good chance” of emerging victorious in the Free State.

“He has a connection to Maryland,” Flynn said, referring to the four years McCain spent as a student at the Naval Academy from 1954-1958.

“He prepared to serve his country in Maryland,” Flynn added.

Calling the senator a “tested leader,” Flynn said McCain’s “appeal with Independents and some Democrats” would make him “competitive” in Maryland.

David Paulson, the communications director of the Maryland Democratic Party, strongly disagreed, saying, “Maryland does not want four more years of George Bush through John W. McCain.”

Former Lt. Gov. Michael Steele at Sen. John McCain's speech this morning in Annapolis
ANNAPOLIS- Speaking today before a sparse crowd of media, staff, and supporters, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) recounted his days as a young student at the U.S. Naval Academy.

Acknowledging that his “four years at the Naval Academy were not notable for exemplary virtue or academic achievement but, rather, for the impressive catalogue of demerits I managed to accumulate,” McCain said Annapolis “holds a special place in my life.”

The state capital was where the senator’s military career began more than five decades ago; he graduated from the Naval Academy in 1958.

The question I would have asked John McCain today.

John McCain’s 9:15 a.m. Annapolis speech

John McCain speaking in Annapolis this morning: Getty ImagesSen. John McCain, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, is speaking in Annapolis this morning. His campaign has released his remarks as prepared for delivery.

Thank you. I am very happy to be here. Annapolis holds a special place in my life, and in the years that have passed since my father drove me to the gates of the Naval Academy to begin my plebe year, memories of my experiences here are often bathed in the welcome haze of nostalgia for the time when I was brave and true and better looking than I am at present.

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) will visit the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis tomorrow. The presumptive Republican nominee for president will deliver a speech at the Navy and Marine Corps Memorial Stadium at 9:00 a.m.

The event is part of McCain’s “Service to America Tour,” designed to highlight the senator’s military background.