McCain picks former lawmaker to head Mo. campaign

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Republican presidential candidate John McCain names a former suburban St. Louis House member and fellow Vietnam veteran to be co-chairman of his Missouri campaign.

Jack Jackson is a retired Marine Corps colonel who was a pilot during the Vietnam War, like the presidential candidate. Jackson, of Wildwood, later became a test pilot in the private sector.

He planned to run for lieutenant governor earlier this year after Gov. Matt Blunt announced he would not seek re-election. But Jackson dropped out of that race after fellow Republican Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder decided to run for re-election instead of seeking to replace Blunt.

When he left the lieutenant governor's race, Jackson told reporters he planned to work for McCain's campaign.