McCain: 'Move beyond' disappointment

ByABC News
November 5, 2008, 12:01 PM

PHOENIX -- In the shadow of desert mountains, Republican John McCain warmly congratulated President-elect Barack Obama late Tuesday and urged the nation to rally around its new president.

"It's natural, tonight, to feel some disappointment," McCain said at the Arizona Biltmore Resort & Spa, flanked by running mate Sarah Palin, his wife, Cindy, and other family members. "But tomorrow, we must move beyond it and work together to get our country moving again."

McCain appealed to all Americans to help Obama "find the necessary compromises to bridge our differences."

When people began booing Obama, McCain held up his arms to stop them, saying, "Please."

Despite McCain's gracious speech and his pleas to supporters to rally behind the president-elect, some of his backers at the Arizona Biltmore seemed bitter about the outcome.

"In four years, you're not going to recognize this country," said John Torgan, 63, a retired military bombmaker. "I've spent half my life in the military. This is not good. (Obama) comes from the cesspool we call Chicago."

Craig Harmon, 53, a Phoenix-area property appraiser, blamed McCain's loss on " the economy and biased media. Mr. McCain should have taken the gloves off earlier."

Harmon, a registered Republican who voted for Bush in 2004, said he became especially concerned about an Obama presidency Monday night when Democratic supporters crashed a McCain rally in Prescott, Ariz. "We're in for some scary times if they represent support for Obama."

McCain and his wife, Cindy, voted shortly after 9 a.m. Mountain Time at a Methodist church near their condominium. Supporters shouted encouragement such as "Thank you, senator," and "We love you!"

He then journeyed to Colorado and New Mexico to urge supporters to get friends to "get out there and vote" in his uphill race against Obama.

"I need your help," McCain told backers in Grand Junction, Colo. "Volunteer. Knock on doors. Get your neighbors to the polls. Drag them there, if you need to."