Russ Weeks says his political philosophies are closely related to those of Arizona Sen. John McCain and that is why he is strongly supporting the Republican candidate to be the country’s next president.

“I like John McCain’s programs and ideas,” Weeks said Wednesday while attending the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minn., as a McCain delegate.

Weeks is the Republican candidate for governor in West Virginia and a former state senator from Raleigh County.

“McCain and I are kindred spirits, so to speak,” Weeks said. “He wants to change politics in Washington. He’s not one of the good old boys and I think we can expect some unexpected things from him.”

Weeks says the alternative to McCain is a liberal with a socialist agenda.

“Barack Obama wants to socialize health care,” Weeks claims. “I can’t support that at all.”

Weeks says Obama’s philosophy of who should be on the U.S. Supreme Court is exactly opposite of his own.

“He has said before that he doesn’t like Clarence Thomas, but I think he’s a great justice,” Weeks said. “I have a totally opposite philosophy of how government should be managed than Obama. Some of Obama’s ideas scare me.”

Due to Hurricane Gustav, the convention schedule was scaled back, Weeks said.

“We are doing what we need to do legally to nominate Sen. John McCain and Gov. Sarah Palin,” he said.

Weeks said he also strongly supports McCain’s choice for a running mate in Palin.

“She has all the delegates really charged up,” he said, “despite the attacks she has received from the liberal media.”

As the convention began Monday, reports that Palin’s 17-year-old daughter, Bristol, was pregnant became public.

In addition to her daughter’s pregnancy, other details about Palin’s background have emerged on the national scene, including that she now has a private lawyer in a legislative ethics investigation in Alaska; questions regarding whether she abused her power in dismissing the state’s public safety commissioner; that she was a member for two years in the 1990s of the Alaska Independence Party, which has at times sought a vote on whether the state should secede; and that Palin’s husband was arrested 22 years ago on a drunken-driving charge.

“She is being attacked by the liberal media and that’s sad,” Weeks said.

“She has more executive experience than McCain, Obama or Joe Biden. I have total confidence in her abilities and her ability to be vice president or to run the country, if needed. I think she brings many great qualities to the Republican ticketh,” he added.

Weeks says he is also hoping for support from McCain in his race against Gov. Joe Manchin this fall.

“I believe McCain has strong support in West Virginia and will win the state,” he said. “I want to bring the same things to West Virginia state government that McCain is trying to bring to Washington, which is an end of the good old boy network and the political favors and corruption.”

— E-mail: fpace@register-herald.com