From CNN Senior Political Correspondent Candy Crowley

FRANKLIN, North Carolina (CNN) -- At a campaign stop Thursday in this Republican stronghold, former Sen. Max Cleland, D-Georgia, told about 100 people that the South "is the most patriotic part of the nation."

Cleland, a veteran who lost three limbs in the Vietnam War, was campaigning for congressional candidate Heath Shuler, a Democrat challenging Rep. Charles Taylor, R-North Carolina, in November. Cleland described Shuler, a former college football star and NFL quarterback, as "an All-American America needs."

Since losing re-election in 2002, Cleland has been a fixture on the campaign trail including Sen. John Kerry's, D-Massachusetts, unsuccessful bid for the White House in 2004. Cleland is scheduled to campaign for Rep. Jack Murtha, D-Pennsylvania, in Johnstown on Saturday.

America Votes 2006