McCain praises rival before pro-Obama crowd

WASHINGTON, July 16 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Republican presidential hopeful John McCain on Wednesday praised Democratic rival Barack Obama before a meeting attended by pro-Obama folks.

He was speaking at the annual convention of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, or NAACP, Cincinnati, Ohio.

Many NAACP members are African-Americans, who heavily favor Obama, an African-American himself, over McCain.

Republican candidates historically do not win much of the black vote.

President George W. Bush received just 11 percent of the black vote when he ran against John Kerry in 2004.

McCain opened his speech by calling attention to Obama's success.

"Don't tell him I said this, but he is an impressive fellow in many ways. He has inspired a great many Americans, some of whom had wrongly believed that a political campaign could hold no purpose or meaning for them," he said. "His success should make Americans, all Americans, proud. Of course, I would prefer his success not continue quite as long as he hopes," McCain added.

McCain's comments were well-received, met by applause and laughs from the crowd.

"Whatever the outcome in November, Obama has achieved a great thing --for himself and for his country --and I thank him for it," he went on.

McCain told the crowd that he and Obama have "fundamental differences" when it comes to the economy, and "honest differences" about the growth of government, but stayed away from criticizing his rival before the largely pro-Obama audience.