Allegheny County Republican Chairman Jim Roddey and a dozen fellow veterans gathered in Green Tree yesterday to showcase their support for Arizona Sen. John S. McCain's presidential campaign.

Their low-key news conference, featuring a testimonial from a former prisoner of war who had who had been one of the Republican candidate's prison mates in Hanoi during the Vietnam War, was part of the campaign's overall effort to counter-program against the media spectacle of McCain's Democratic rival, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama, on his visit to Iraq.

Mr. McCain himself was seeking a share of the political headlines yesterday in an appearance in Portland, Maine, with the current Republican president's father, former President George H.W. Bush, who is another former Navy pilot who was forced to parachute from a plane crippled in combat.

Mr. McCain, commenting on his opponent's Iraq war stance, said: "He's been completely wrong on the issue. I have been steadfast in my position."

Speaking of the GOP senator who hopes to be one of his successors, the former president said, "My respect for him knows no bounds."

In the local McCain headquarters in Green Tree, James Warner, a retired lawyer and former Marine aviator who was imprisoned in Vietnam for 5 ¹/₂ years, said he had witnessed repeated displays of character and leadership from Mr. McCain during that time that, he said, attested to his ability to serve as commander-in-chief.

Also joining the local display of support for Mr. McCain was state Sen. Bob Robbins, R-Greenville, a member of the steering committee of Pennsylvania Veterans for John McCain. Mr. Robbins, a West Point graduate and also a Vietnam veteran, lauded his candidate for speaking out in favor of the so-called "surge" strategy for Iraq at a time when it was politically risky. "We have a candidate who's served in the trenches all his life,'' he said.

Mr. McCain's companion yesterday, the former President Bush, had imposed a 1992 moratorium on offshore oil drilling. On the same day as their joint appearance, the McCain campaign was releasing an advertisement contending that Mr. Obama's opposition to offshore drilling was to blame for soaring gasoline prices. The ad is airing in 11 states, including Pennsylvania.

The ad is the latest tit-for-tat commercial about energy in the presidential campaign. Earlier this month, an Obama ad accused Mr. McCain of being "part of the problem" of high gas prices.