Democrats Counter Mccain Taunts With Defecting Republican

Hours after being taunted by John McCain with disaffected Hillary Clinton supporters, the Democrats tonight unrolled their own defecting Republican at their party convention.

Tonight's speech to the Democratic convention by Jim Leach, a well regarded moderate Republican from Iowa who spent 30 years in Congress, was a welcome morale boost for Barack Obama's campaign.

In his speech, Leach described Obama as a "transcending candidate," and likened him to the late John F Kennedy.

"The change Barack Obama is advocating is far more than a break with today's politics. It is a clarion call for renewal rooted in time-tested American values that top Republicans, as well as Democratic traditions," he said.

The praise for Obama contrasted with Leach's elegy for America's decline over the last eight years of the Bush administration. Though he did not take a direct swipe at Bush, he spoke of America's diminishing position in the world over the last decade.

"It is clear to all Americans that something is out of kilter," Leach said.Leach lost his seat in 2006, in an upset defeat that stemmed in part from his refusal to use homophobic material in his campaign.The stand upset rightwing Republicans who withdrew their support from Leach.

His show of support for Obama comes amid a concerted effort by McCain's campaign to split off disenchanted Democrats who supported Clinton's campaign for the White House and have yet to line up behind Obama.

Opinion polls suggest that the tactic has had some success, with estimates that as many as 30% of Clinton's former supporters are considering voting for McCain.

Earlier, the McCain campaign unrolled an ad featuring a nurse from Wisconsin who said she would vote Republican for the first time in her life in November.