Republican Presidential nominee Senator John McCain is touring America, the America, he says, that has been neglected. Poor America. Working-class America.

McCain kicked off his tour in Selma on the Edmund Pettus Bridge, the site of 1965’s “Bloody Sunday,” where armed officers attacked peaceful civil rights demonstrators. McCain will next tour Appalachia, an area where many residents live in extreme poverty.  He’ll also head to Youngtown, OH, where the loss of blue collar jobs has devastated the local economy, and the Ninth Ward in New Orleans, an area that has seen little development since Hurricane Katrina hit nearly three years ago. America has indeed forgotten the people living in these cities and in others.

But McCain must do more than simply land in town for one night, make a speech and continue on to the next stop in this publicity campaign. He must convince the average American, through proposed policies, that he actually cares enough to make a difference. 

John McCain, though more liberal than his Republican peers, is a conservative. And his political views demonstrate that: He does not believe in a woman’s right to choose; he supports capital punishment and mandatory sentencing plus he does not support universal healthcare. His past voting record does not paint the picture of a man who cares about the needs of the poor, at least in his political life. In fact, McCain has often supported many of President Bush’s policies, policies that have not served America’s poor and working class well. Under Bush, the U.S. entered into a war that continues to push the country into debt, the number of poor people has increased, and public education has suffered. So much for compassionate conservatism.

If America is to believe that McCain will not be more of the same, the senator must do more than talk. He must propose a realistic -- and fundable -- plan to provide healthcare for the 44 million Americans who do not have it.  McCain has to develop a plan that provides early childhood education for the poor, and he must propose a realistic solution to save America’s public school system. His agenda must include a roadmap for providing job training, as well as access to funds to pay for college. These are the issues America’s poor and working class care about. 

While he waits for the Democratic party to select his opponent, McCain should use the time he has on his hands to develop strategies that will deliver America’s promise to all citizens, not just a privileged few. 

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Judge Greg Mathis is national vice president of Rainbow PUSH and a national board member of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.