McCain concedes, urges unity with Obama

'I'm really sad'
Molly Pinckney, 60, of Phoenix stood frowning, the red pom pom she earlier had waved tucked by her side.

"I'm really sad. I'm sad for our country."

What happens next depends on the president-elect, she said. "It really depends on how Obama behaves ... whether he's going to let rabble-rousers tear this country apart."

The night began appropriately enough with Elton John's "I'm Still Standing" booming from the speakers at the Arizona Biltmore resort, the same place where, 28 years ago, McCain and his wife, Cindy, celebrated their wedding.

Hundreds of supporters wore buttons and T-shirts proclaiming "Victory 2008," chanted their guy's name and, like the candidate they gathered to honor, projected optimism and faith.

But as the night wore on, organizers temporarily stopped broadcasting the returns overhead and announced few results, as if not to put a damper on the party. Those they did disclose lagged behind national projections showing Obama gaining on McCain.

Even after Obama had been declared the winner in Pennsylvania and Ohio, former Louisiana Gov. Buddy Roemer walked on stage to tell the crowd about "another state in the McCain category. It's the great state of Louisiana!"

A roar erupted, and Roemer promised: "This election still has some anxious moments to go."

Building momentum?
Returns unavailable to them, supporters instead danced to Hank Williams Jr. singing, "Mac is going to survive."

"He's already lost Ohio. They think. Right?" said John Moore said from the back of the crowded ballroom. "I'm wondering why they're not showing us that much. I wish I had a BlackBerry so I could track it myself."

He and his wife tried to put a positive spin on the information blackout: "I'm sure it's going to be positive," said John. "Maybe they're building momentum."

But around 8:30 local time, U.S. Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., took to the stage to deliver what sounded like a eulogy to McCain's quest for the presidency.

"The truth of the matter is it is uphill. This has always been an uphill race. Yet John McCain kept clawing back, he kept clawing back until tonight." He applauded McCain's "fighting spirit," while still telling the crowd the race was too close to call.

Click for related content First Read: McCain's call to Obama McCain's speech transcript

One supporter muttered, "I'm feeling like doom is coming."

In closing, Kyl cited a Bible passage that seemed as appropriate an ending to McCain's campaign as any.

2 Timothy 4:7: "I have fought a good fight. I have finished my course. I have kept the faith."

Before McCain took the stage, Nathaniel Eyler, 29, of Phoenix, mouthed the words as the song "God Bless the USA" played.

"Scared," he said in response to how he felt about the outcome, calling Obama a "socialist."

"I'm not going to sugarcoat it. I'm scared. Just the idea of Barack Obama as president of the United States scares me. It does not embody the idealism I grew up with and am passionate about. We're Americans. We're resilient. We'll bounce back. Our government's idiot-proof. There's nothing he can do that we can't fix in the end."

Still, he said, "We're going to be taking steps backwards."

MORE FROM JOHN MCCAIN NEWS

John McCain News Section Front

McCain concedes, urges unity with Obama McCain joins Fey to joke on 'SNL' John McCain still has a shot Palin faces ethics complaint over kids' travel Todd: Debate make or break for McCain McCain campaign writes off Michigan McCain says Obama policies will deepen recession McCain talks bailout deal with Romney, CEOs McCain says he would fire SEC Chairman Economists take critical view of health plans John McCain News Section Front   Add John McCain News headlines to your news reader: