TWO FORMER JOHN MCCAIN SUPPORTERS CREATE TELEVISION AD BLITZ TO SET THE "MAVERICK'S" RECORD STRAIGHT

IRVINE, Calif., Sept., 5, 2008 - Last night the GOP convention culminated in John McCain's acceptance of his party's nomination, ending a four-day effort to convince the American public that his Presidency is something other than a third Bush term and that he is still the maverick who ran for President in 2000, according to Eugene Hedlund and John K. Addis of TruthandHope.org PAC. Hedlund and Addis say Senator McCain is out of step with mainstream America, for while the nation has cried out for change voicing disapproval of the Bush administration in ever increasing numbers, McCain has instead supported President Bush to a greater degree each passing year.  

TruthandHope.org PAC has created a media campaign that with eloquent simplicity brings to the forefront these simple truths.  Making this effort possible is the union of two former McCain supporters who actively campaigned on his behalf in 2000, but have found little to no resemblance to the McCain "straight talking maverick" in the John McCain running for President today.  This union of Hedlund, founder of TruthandHope.Org and Addis, graphic designer & creator of "The Public V John McCain" spot, lends a particular credibility to this effort.

TruthandHope.org PAC was founded in 2004 & aired independent grassroots television ads in support of Governor Dean & the Democratic Party's eventual nominee Senator John Kerry.  It raised nearly $500,000 for these efforts, and was credited by Governor Dean for his primary victory in Vermont, as he had suspended his campaign weeks earlier. 

The first ad in a series titled "The Public V McCain" became an instant internet sensation when released in concept form.  Within 24 hours the ad has over 200,000 YouTube hits and hit the front page of Digg.com with nearly 5,000 "diggs" as well as the front page on many prominent blogs across the country.  Andrew Sullivan of TheAtlantic.com posted this concept ad on August 14 calling it "the most inspired yet."  With this groundswell of support it was evidently clear that this message must be taken beyond the internet and into the American public's homes.  With this spot airing initially in Ohio and Virginia, early voting swing states the effort begins to set the McCain record straight.

About Hedlund and Addis

Eugene Hedlund is a mortgage broker in Irvine, California who formed TruthandHope.org PAC in 2004.  A lifelong Republican, he knew the country needed a change in 2004 wished to do more than just cast a single vote and contribute monetarily.   John K. Addis runs a web and graphic design studio in Lansing, Michigan, and has voted for the Republican Presidential candidate in every election.  In recent years, however, Addis became increasingly disillusioned with the Republican party, discovering that Democrats were better at accomplishing fiscal responsibility, and showing competence with foreign affairs.