John McCain puts our country first, above any ideology, economic agenda, personal ambition, even above his own life. He has earned your vote.

John McCain has been tested in more ways than anyone who has ever run for the presidency. In the face of real danger, have you ever met evil face to face? John McCain has — in the hellhole of a North Vietnamese prison. He was tested in ways he never anticipated. For five years, most in solitary, he was punched, kicked, had his bones broken, his teeth broken and his bones broken again.

An admiral's son, he was offered early release. That would mean a hospital, a bed, hot food, fresh air — not lying on concrete in his own waste mixed with his own blood. He refused. There were men who had been there longer. He valued them over himself. John McCain acted in the interest of his fellow pilots in refusing early release from abuse that left him unable to lift his arms. His true character revealed himself at that moment. He voted to stay.

Barack Obama's response to the tests he has faced gives no assurance of similar character. Under no pressure, no threat to his life and limb, instead of taking a stand, Obama votes "present." Obama never sacrificed for anyone. He chose to advance his political ambitions through friendships with the far-left fringe of Chicago politics and gives long-winded excuses denying any responsibility for the company he keeps.

Obama denied ever hearing his pastor damn America despite 20 years in his company. Obama has not demanded accountability for the massive, multi-state voter registration fraud involving ACORN, the community group he worked with for more than 16 years. He praised its leadership last November. In the wake of past convictions and new investigations nationwide, Obama's campaign gave an ACORN affiliate $832,000, claiming it was for "staging, sound, lighting," but later admitting the cash was to help "get out the vote."

John McCain leads from the front, not the rear. He stood alone in support for the surge in Iraq. It worked. He was right. Obama proclaimed possession of superior judgment in opposing the surge, saying we would fail. We didn't. He doesn't.

McCain will be a commander-in-chief who appreciates the threat of international terrorism and knows how to command. Obama will be a law professor who will lecture us instead of standing up for us. He will discuss our mistakes with evil people who want to destroy us, meeting them with no preconditions.

John McCain talks straight. At the Saddleback forum, he stated: "Evil exists in the world and must be defeated." Obama? He gave a lecture on evil — how evil exists in this country. McCain believes life begins at conception. Obama? His answer: "Above my pay grade." You may not agree with McCain, but at least you know where he stands.

John McCain believes in us. His approach to taxes, healthcare and energy is based on our making the right choice for ourselves. Obama believes in government, run by him. His approach to these issues is based on his making the choice for us. He will decide who is able to pay more and who has the greater need to receive. He calls that fair. History calls it Marxism.

In fact, Obama is so taken with himself he refashioned the seal of the United States of America with his name on it. His Web site showed little kids singing songs to the leader. He wanted to give his European speech at the Brandenburg Gate, where Presidents Kennedy and Reagan spoke. The Germans saw through that ploy. They refused The One the chance to glorify himself.

We are at our core a humble people. Our values determined our unique destiny to lead the world. The man you know who without doubt or reservation has earned your trust to always put our country first, to protect and preserve our values, values he preserved and protected with his own blood and guts, is John McCain. He deserves your vote.

Adrienne King is an attorney who practices law with her husband, Sam King Jr., as King and King. She wrote this commentary for The Advertiser.