McCain orders convention changes over Gustav

Republicans will suspend most of the activities planned for tomorrow’s opening of their national convention because of the threat of Hurricane Gustav, presidential hopeful John McCain announced tonight.

McCain, who will accept the presidential nomination on Thursday night, said only those portions of the programme that are absolutely necessary will be held.

His words were beamed via satellite from St Louis into the convention city in St Paul, Minnesota, where Republicans are gathering to nominate him for president.

As Gustav bore down on New Orleans, McCain tore up the script for the convention.

“This is a time when we have to do away with our party politics and we have to act as Americans,” he said as fellow Republicans converged on their convention city to nominate him for the White House.

President George W Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney scrapped plans to address the convention tomorrow, and McCain’s campaign chartered a jet to fly delegates back to their hurricane-threatened states along the Gulf Coast.

The hasty reordering of an event months in the making underscored not only the risk posed by Gustav, but also an intense desire by McCain and Republicans to avoid the political damage that Bush suffered from his widely criticised response to Hurricane Katrina three years ago.

The formal business of the convention includes nominating McCain for president and Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his vice presidential running mate on Wednesday.

McCain’s acceptance speech, set for prime time on Thursday evening, is among the most critical events of the campaign for his chances of winning the White House.