McCain introduces campaign ad

WASHINGTON, June 6 (UPI) -- The two-way race for the U.S. presidency opened unofficially Friday with presumptive Republican nominee John McCain releasing his first TV commercial.

"Safe" shows the Arizona senator's strong points -- his military heroism and national security experience.

"Only a fool or a fraud talks tough or romantically about war," McCain says in the commercial. "When I was 5 years old, my father left for war. My grandfather came home from war and died the next day. I was shot down over Vietnam and spent five years as a POW. Some of the friends I served with never came home. I hate war.

And I know how terrible its costs are. I'm running for president to keep the country I love safe."

The campaign said that the ad would run in 54 media markets in 10 swing states, Politico.com reported.

On the negative side, Democrats planned to release a video "McCain and the Lobbyists." The Republican National Committee opened a section on its Web site titled "Meet Barack Obama" with negative information on the presumptive Democratic candidate.