"It is time for the United States to show the kind of leadership the world expects from us, in the tradition of American presidents who worked to reduce the nuclear threat to mankind," he said.
As he tried to lay out his policy on nuclear weapons and security, McCain was interrupted four times by anti-war protesters within the first 10 minutes of his speech.
The young protesters, some dressed in business suits, rose intermittently during McCain's remarks. One waved a white banner that said, "Iraq Veterans Against the War." Others shouted: "Endless war!"
McCain tried to defuse the situation with humor. At one point, he joked that this "may turn into a longer speech than you anticipated."
"I have town hall meetings all the time. I'll be having one tomorrow, where people are allowed to come and state their views and we exchange them," McCain told the crowd. "One thing we don't do is interfere with other people's right to free speech, but that doesn't seem to be the case with these people." At that moment, his staff was escorting several protesters from the room.
A few minutes later, when McCain was interrupted by two protesters shouting "Iraq was not a threat," he responded directly, "I will never surrender in Iraq, my friends. ... Our troops will come home with victory and with honor." He added, "We are winning."
Johanna Neuman and Maeve Reston write for the Los Angeles Times
