Arizona Senator John McCain has released his first general election ad on Friday, March 28, 2008.

The narrator describes McCain as "the American president Americans have been waiting for." The ad is just over one minute long and it starts off with clips from his campaigns where he is telling voters to "Stay Stong" and "Do Not Yield". The ad also features clips from when John McCain was a Prisoner of War.

The ad has sparked an online debate because it is unclear what is meant by "American President". And "the American president Americans have been waiting for." seems to be an allusion to Obama's much quoted line, "we are the ones we have been waiting for."

John McCain has appeared to have embraced the Republican nomination after much success at the March 4 Primaries.

• YouTube Video: John McCain Television Ad (Time 1:02)
• Topix.net: John McCain Ad
• Google News: John McCain Ad
• FOXNews.com: McCain Projects Image of Patriot on Road to General Election (March 29, 2008)
  • McCain launched his first general election ad Friday, in which a baritone narrator describes the Arizona senator as "the American president Americans have been waiting for." The ad shows images of McCain when he was a POW imprisoned in Vietnam, and it begins with campaign clips of McCain telling voters "stay strong" and "do not yield."
• CNN: Ad casts McCain as strong, patriotic leader (March 28, 2008)
  • "John McCain. The American president American's have been waiting for," the ad's narrator says. In what appears to be a shot at Democratic candidate Sen. Barack Obama's message of change, campaign officials said the purpose of the ad is to show "John McCain has the experience to make change," echoing a line the the Democratic candidate, Sen. Hillary Clinton, has used on the campaign trail."
• WashingtonPost.com: McCain's TV Ad Prompts Chatter About 'American President' (March 28, 2008)
  • "Bloggers and commenters on political Web sites wondered what other kind of president American voters would be selecting. Is "American" a harmless patriotic modifier, or is McCain seeking to raise doubts about Sen. Barack Obama, a potential opponent who has an exotic African name, spent much of his youth living in a Muslim country and attended a church run by a pastor known for his occasional anti-American rhetoric?"
• Fox Business: New Ad, But No New Ideas From John McCain (March 28, 2008)
  • "The American people have been waiting for a president who understands the challenges they face, not another out of touch Bush Republican who promises four more years of the same failed leadership. John McCain can try to reintroduce himself to the country, but he can't change the fact that he cast aside his principles to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with President Bush for the last seven years. While we honor McCain's military service, the fact is Americans want a real leader who offers real solutions, not a blatant opportunist who doesn't understand the economy and is promising to keep our troops in Iraq for 100 years."