McCain gets big-name endorsements

John McCain's presidential hopes rest largely on convincing voters that he is best suited to be commander in chief.

This morning, he received some help making that case from a group of foreign policy luminaries, including secretaries of state and top military officers. Among them: Alexander Haig, Henry Kissinger, and George Shultz.

In an article posted on National Review Online, they list what they call a "panoply of problems" facing the United States in the world and say that "never before in our history have we experienced an international climate of such complexity."

"We strongly endorse the candidacy of Senate McCain and as a matter of deep personal conviction, call upon all Americans to join us in that judgment," they conclude.

McCain, a Vietnam War hero who was a POW after his plane was shot down, has been the most vocal of the Republican presidential hopefuls in support of the so-called surge of US troops in Iraq. He has been speaking at Veterans of Foreign Wars posts in Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina on his "No Surrender" tour that appears to have revived his campaign.