Finally, at a time that Americans seem to want a president who can work across the aisle, McCain is the man they can trust. Obama talks about uniting America in every speech, but John McCain has the proven track record. McCain’s endorsement by Joe Lieberman speaks to the power of building bridges across the political divide. You don’t build relationships by bending your principles. You build them by finding common ground where even “enemies” can agree to make a difference together.

Demonizing Democrats or Bush will not win this election. McCain has taken a strong stand against partisan attacks. He realizes that America thrives in a workable tension between alternative approaches to governing America. McCain focuses on what he is for and reaches out to any independent or Democrat willing to join his cause to keep America strong.

While the Democrats are selling that all the answers come from Washington, John McCain seems to be taking a lesson from Ronald Reagan. At the 1992 Republican Convention, President Reagan shared the “secret” to his success: “I appealed to your best hopes, not your worst fears, to your confidence, rather than your doubts.” Many Democrats and independents trusted Reagan because he trusted the American people.

Speaking to an audience in Texas John McCain launched his fight to win this election once his nomination was secure: “We are the captains of our fate. We're not a country that prefers nostalgia to optimism; a country that would rather go back than forward. We're the world's leader, and leaders don't pine for the past and dread the future. We make the future better than the past. We don't hide from history. We make history. That, my friends, is the essence of hope in America, hope built on courage, and faith in the values and principles that have made us great. I intend to make my stand on those principles and chart a course for our future greatness, and trust in the judgment of the people I have served all my life. So stand up with me, my friends, stand up and fight for America -- for her strength, her ideals, and her future.”

In a long and demanding campaign, authenticity and trust will beat eloquence and empty promises every time. In this great game of politics 2008, McCain has the wild card that will give him the winning hand—Trust!