St Paul, Minnesota - John McCain touted his military service and reform record in seeking to reclaim the mantle of change from his Democratic opponent in a speech accepting the Republican Party's presidential nomination on Thursday.

McCain blistered his own party for having "lost the trust of the American people" in recent years through corruption scandals and partisan politics. The Republicans lost control of Congress in 2006 after controlling the legislative branch for most of the previous 12 years, and Republican George W Bush is nearing the end of his eight-year presidency with approval ratings at historic lows.

"Let me offer an advance warning to the old, big spending, do-nothing, me-first, country-second crowd: change is coming," McCain thundered.

The Arizona senator, who has a long reputation as a maverick within his own party during 26 years in Congress, mimicked many of the anti-establishment themes that have been the cornerstone of Democratic nominee Barack Obama's presidential campaign.

But McCain argued that he was the candidate with proven ability to shake up Washington and bring opposing politicians together, in an attempt to rebuff Democratic arguments that he would continue Bush's unpopular policies.

Despite his audience of party loyalists, McCain was blunt about the failings of a party whose Congressional majorities suffered a series of corruption scandals before losing both the Senate and lower House in 2006.

"I fight to restore the pride and principles of our party," he said. "We were elected to change Washington, and we let Washington change us. We lost the trust of the American people when some Republicans gave in to the temptations of corruption. We're going to change that."

McCain alluded to his record of working with Democrats, often in defiance of Republican leaders - on such issues as campaign finance or immigration reform - with his more than five years as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam.

"I will reach out my hand to anyone to help me get this country moving again," he said. "I have that record, and the scars to prove it. Senator Obama does not."

McCain said that his naval career and years in captivity had taught him the pain of war, and he promised to use diplomatic and economic policy in addition to military force to defeat US enemies.

"I hate war. It is terrible beyond imagination," he said. "I'm running for president to keep the country I love safe and prevent other families from risking their loved ones in war as my family has."

Soon after McCain began speaking, a heckler high up in the arena began shouting, revealing a sign that read "McCain votes against vets" on one side and "You can't win in occupation" on the other.

Conventioneers drowned out the disruption with chants of "USA." After the protester was removed, an orange-shirted volunteer drew cheers from the crowd by ripping the sign into pieces, even using his teeth to open a tear in the stiff cardboard.

McCain was preceded by his wife, Cindy, on the final night of the Republican National Convention in St Paul, Minnesota. Cindy McCain praised her husband as a military hero, dedicated father, a reformist and independent thinker.

"If Americans want straight talk and the plain truth, they should take a good close look at John McCain ... a man who served in Washington without ever becoming a Washington insider," she said.

McCain spoke of his career as a Navy fighter pilot who was shot down, captured and tortured, a personal story highlighted throughout the convention, which had the theme of "country first."

"I fell in love with my country when I was a prisoner in someone else's," McCain said. "I was never the same again. I wasn't my own man anymore. I was my country's."

McCain voiced "admiration" for Obama and avoided harsh attacks on the Illinois senator. But he took one jab - without naming Obama - that recalled Republican criticism of the Democratic nominee as a presumptive, celebrity politician.

"I'm not running for president because I think I'm blessed with such personal greatness that history has anointed me to save our country in its hour of need," McCain said.

McCain's speech ended with confetti and balloons dropped from the ceiling, a tradition of US political conventions. Waist-deep in balloons on the delegate floor, some women used their sharp heels to start popping the obstructions.

As cleanup began in the ice hockey arena, workers began destroying the balloons using their own car keys, in the absence of sharp objects inside the convention, which was secured by the US Secret Service.

Obama had earlier accused Republicans of failing to address issues that matter to voters.

"They've had a lot to say about me, but they haven't had anything to say about you," Obama, a four-year senator from Illinois, said at a Pennsylvania rally. "You haven't heard a word about how we're going to deal with any aspect of the economy that is affecting you and your pocketbook day-to-day." (dpa)