John McCain
John Sidney McCain III (born
August 29,
1936) is an
American politician and
Veteran. McCain has been a
U.S. Senator from
Arizona since
1987, winning re-election in
1992,
1998, and
2004. He was a
presidential candidate in the
2000 election, but was defeated in the Republican
primaries by then-
Texas Governor and now President
George W. Bush. McCain's initiatives in the Senate include
campaign finance reform,
immigration reform, and concerns about the
detention of extrajudicial prisoners.
Senator John McCain was born in
Coco Solo in the U.S.-controlled
Panama Canal Zone. Both his father and grandfather were prominent
U.S. Navy admirals (
John S. McCain, Jr. and
John S. McCain, Sr.). He attended
Episcopal High School and graduated in
1954. That fall, McCain, like his father and grandfather, entered the
United States Naval Academy. He graduated in 1958, and joked that he had followed the footsteps of his father and grandfather, both of whom had graduated very low in their respective classes at Annapolis. McCain graduated 894 out of a class of 899. In 1965, McCain married Carol Shepp, a model originally from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The couple divorced in 1980.
After graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy, McCain reported to
Naval Air Station Pensacola,
Florida to begin training as a Naval Aviator. While in training, McCain suffered a mishap during which his aircraft crashed into
Corpus Christi Bay, though he escaped. McCain graduated successfully and entered the US Navy's Light Attack Community as a Naval Aviator.
Prior to becoming a Naval Aviator, McCain flew the propellor-driven
A-1 Skyraider on Navy cruises to Europe. During a trip to attend the
Army-Navy Game, McCain suffered an engine failure and was forced to eject from his crippled aircraft. This rash of accidents was not uncommon during the era of Navy flying McCain was in.
Tom Wolfe's
The Right Stuff explains that a career naval aviator (20-year pilot) was statistically expected to have to eject from his aircraft at least twice in the span of a career.
Vietnam
McCain escaped death once again on July 29, 1967. While the USS
Forrestal sat off the coast of
Vietnam preparing for attacks, a Zuni rocket from an
F-4 Phantom was accidentally launched across the carrier's deck. The rocket struck McCain's
A-4E Skyhawk as the jet was preparing for launch. The impact ruptured the Skyhawk's fuel tank - after which leaking fuel ignited, knocking two bombs loose. McCain escaped from his jet by climbing out of the cockpit, walking down to the nose of the plane, and jumping off the nose boom onto the burning deck. Ninety seconds after the impact, the bomb exploded underneath the airplane. McCain was struck in the legs and chest by shrapnel. The ensuing fire killed 134 sailors, destroyed 20 aircraft and threatened to sink the ship.
[http://b-29s-over-korea.com/book_reports/The-John-McCain-Story01.html] Film shot aboard the Forrestal shows McCain narrowly escaping the explosion.
After the
Forrestal incident, McCain volunteered to join the VA-163 Saints on board the
Oriskany, which was short-handed after a separate deck incident on that ship. The Saints squadron and its parent Air Wing 16 suffered the highest loss rate of any Navy Flying unit during the entire Vietnam War. This was due to the perilous missions assigned to it and to the aggressive demeanor of its aviators. On October 26, 1966, prior to McCain's transfer to that carrier, the mishandling of a flare had resulted in a deck fire (44 men lost their lives, including 24 pilots).
Prisoner of war
|
Interview with McCain on April 24, 1974, after his return home. |
On
October 26,
1967, McCain was shot down in his
A-4 Skyhawk over
Vietnam, by a Soviet-made anti-aircraft missile, and was held as a
prisoner of war in
Hanoi for five-and-a-half years, mostly in the infamous
Hanoi Hilton. McCain had two broken arms and a broken leg after he ejected from his plane. McCain landed in Truc Bach Lake. After he regained consciousness, a mob gathered around him and stripped him of his clothing. He was then tortured by Vietnamese soldiers. He was bayonetted in his left foot and groin. His shoulder was crushed by another soldier's rifle butt. He was then transported to the Hanoi Hilton, also known as Hoa Lo Prison.
Once McCain arrived at the Hanoi Hilton, he was placed in a cell and interrogated daily. When McCain refused to provide any information to his captors, he was beaten until he lost consciousness. [Source: "John McCain: Man of the People" by Paul Alexander]
When the North Vietnamese discovered his father was the Commander-in-Chief, Pacific Command,(
CINCPAC)who was in charge of all US forces in Vietnam, he was offered a chance to go home, in an effort to embarrass the American military. Senior POWs had ordered there would be no going home unless all went home, and McCain, as did most POWs, followed orders, and refused to be repatriated back to the United States.
McCain signed an anti-American propaganda message which was written in Vietnamese, but did so only as a result of torture (to this day, he cannot raise his arms above his head, due to the severe beatings administered by the North Vietnamese). It is that period during his capture that he most regrets. After McCain signed the initial statement, the Vietnamese decided they could not use it. They tried to force him to sign a second statement. This time, he refused. He received two to three beatings per week because he refused to sign any more statements for his captors. [Source: "John McCain: Man of the People" by Paul Alexander]
He was released from captivity in
1973. McCain was reinstated to flight status and became Commanding Officer of VA-174 Hellrazors, the East Coast A-7 Corsair II Navy training squadron. He then became the Navy's liaison to the Senate. He retired from the Navy in 1981 as a
Captain. On the same day he watched his father buried next to his grandfather in
Arlington National Cemetery. During his military career he received a
Silver Star, a
Bronze Star, the
Legion of Merit, the
Purple Heart, and a
Distinguished Flying Cross.
McCain is one of only three Vietnam veterans currently serving in the US Senate, the others being fellow
Republican Chuck Hagel of
Nebraska, and
Democrat John Kerry of
Massachusetts.
A TV movie entitled
Faith Of My Fathers, based on McCain's memoir of his experiences as a POW, aired on
Memorial Day,
2005 on
A&E.
When
John Jacob Rhodes, the longtime Republican
congressman from
Arizona's 1st congressional district, announced his retirement, McCain ran for the seat as a Republican in
1982 and won it. In
1986, upon Republican Senator
Barry Goldwater's retirement, McCain was elected to succeed him.
Keating Five scandal
In the late 1980s McCain was named in the embarrassing
Keating Five scandal in which he and four other Senators provided help to
Charles Keating, who was secretly manipulating savings and loan banks. The Senate ethics committee's special counsel concluded in 1991 that McCain was not substantially involved in the influence-peddling scheme, but criticized him and three others for "questionable conduct." McCain remained in the Senate and made campaign finance reform a key legislative interest. McCain has subsequently remarked that he was, 'shocked,' and, 'ashamed,' of being involved in the matter, and has subsequently cited his experience with the Keating Five scandal as one of the driving forces behind his legislative efforts for
campaign finance reform.
2000 race for President
In
1997,
TIME named him as one of the "25 Most Influential People in America." His best-selling family memoir,
Faith of My Fathers (
1999), helped propel his presidential run. McCain skipped the Iowa caucus focusing on the overwhelmingly important
New Hampshire primary. He made over 200 visits, appearing in every town in New Hampshire. In each case he gave a ten minute talk (focused on campaign reform issues), then announced he would stay until he answered every question that everyone had. He won by a 60-40
landslide, and suddenly was the celebrity of the hour. Analysts predicted that a McCain victory in the second primary in South Carolina would likely have given him unstoppable momentum. Instead, his loss brought the race even again and allowed Bush the opportunity to regain the momentum. Analysts attribute McCain's loss to Bush's mobilization of the state's evangelical voters and to the perception among voters that McCain's campaign was too negative especially in regards to ads comparing Bush's honesty to former president Clinton's.
[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/in_depth/americas/2000/us_elections/election_news/651163.stm] This perception was formed despite the presence of allegations of negative campaigning on both sides including a
push polling campaign, where phone calls were made to conservative Republican voters in the Deep South, allegedly to ask them whether they would support McCain if he had an interracial daughter with a black woman. McCain in fact had an adopted daughter from Bangladesh. Accounts of this are covered in the books,
Bush's Brain and
Boy Genius.
[http://www.boston.com/news/politics/president/articles/2004/03/21/the_anatomy_of_a_smear_campaign/][http://archives.cnn.com/2000/ALLPOLITICS/stories/02/10/campaign.wrap/] Additionally conservative commentator
Rush Limbaugh entered the fray supporting Bush.
McCain never recovered from his defeat in South Carolina, going on to lose 9 of the 13
primaries on
Super Tuesday. His overall loss on that day has been attributed to his going "off message," ineffectively accusing Bush of being anti-Catholic in response to his visit to
Bob Jones University [http://archive.salon.com/politics2000/feature/2000/03/10/catholics/] and getting into a verbal battle with leaders of the
Religious Right.
[http://www.religioustolerance.org/poli_rel.htm] McCain was also criticized for his continued use of an
ethnic slur in reference to his Vietnamese captors. He told reporters,
"I hate the gooks.... I will hate them as long as I live." [http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2000/02/18/MN32194.DTL] At first, he stood by his use of the slur, saying that it was
"the kindest, the kindest description I can give them." [http://archive.salon.com/politics2000/feature/2000/02/17/mccain/index.html] Amid heavy criticism
[http://quest.cjonline.com/stories/030100/gen_slur.shtml], McCain later reversed his position and apologized. McCain would go on to win a few more primaries (Michigan, Massachusetts, Arizona, Rhode Island, Connecticut and Vermont), but in a two-man contest he was unable to catch up. Though he apologized for his usage of the racial slur "gook," he had aroused the ire of Asian Americans due to the delay of an apology for such an obvious transgression.
It is also speculated that this is the cause of McCain losing the California and New York primaries due to their large Asian American demographic.
2004 race for President
McCain publicly supported Bush in the
2004 U.S. presidential election. He often praised Bush's leadership and continuing zeal after the
terrorist attacks of
September 11, 2001, and in that light less important issues could be pushed aside. McCain's reputation as a moderate appealed to many voters who found Bush too
conservative, and in the 2000 elections, many saw Bush as the more conservative candidate and McCain as the more moderate candidate. According to
voteview.com, McCain's voting record in the 109th Congress is the third most conservative (as of November 2005).
There was some speculation that McCain's longtime friend and colleague, and also the
Democratic Presidential nominee,
John Kerry of
Massachusetts would ask McCain to be his running mate. This prompted Bush to run an
advertisement called "The First Choice" showing clips of McCain praising Bush. Furthermore, the
GOP used this information to ridicule Kerry's eventual running mate, one-term Senator
John Edwards of
North Carolina.
McCain accused the
Swift Boat Vet campaign against his longtime friend John Kerry of being "dishonest and dishonorable".
[http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/08/06/MNGUT83SS41.DTL]2008 race for President
Many current polls have Senator McCain as one of the leading candidates in the 2008 Republican primary, but McCain has not given a definitive answer as to whether or not he will pursue the nomination in 2008 as a Republican. In the June 2005 edition of
Men's Journal magazine, McCain said that he "absolutely" would like to be President of the United States, but has not yet decided whether or not he will run again in 2008. He indicated that he would probably not make a firm decision until 2007 about another run at the White House, citing family and Senate responsibilities. On an episode of the television show
The View, aired November 8, 2005, McCain remarked he would only make a decision after the
2006 mid-term elections.
He will be 72 by the time the elections roll around in 2008, making him three years older than the oldest elected president
Ronald Reagan, but he has dismissed concerns about his age and past health concerns (malignant melanoma in 2000), stating that his condition was "excellent." Should McCain win in 2008 and subsequently win re-election in
2012, McCain would be the oldest president to serve, being expected to leave office in January
2017 at 80 years old.
McCain's oft-cited strengths
[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/11/AR2006021101374.html] as a presidential candidate in 2008 include national name recognition, ties to lobbying and campaign finance reform initiatives, military service (including time as a
POW), running a former presidential campaign in 2000, veteran fund-raising abilities, strong advocacy for President Bush's re-election campaign in 2004, and appeal to independent voters.
His weaknesses include his age and strained relations with some elements of the
Republican Party base. Some Republicans are wary of McCain's "maverick" positions, including McCain's
Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, which they charge would undermine
First Amendment free speech protections, and the fact that he has sometimes sided with Democrats on issues ranging from global warming and his vote against President Bush's 2001 tax cuts. McCain has won mixed reviews for his handling of judicial nominations, drawing criticism from some conservatives for his leadership in the
Gang of 14 deal on judicial filibusters, an outcry which was later tempered by the agreement's perceived success in averting a filibuster against
U.S. Supreme Court nominees
John Roberts and
Samuel Alito, who won confirmation. However, these same positions are also the reasons why political moderates might support McCain in a presidential election. One area where McCain has largely won support from conservatives is in his aggressive defense of the
Iraq War.
In May 2006, McCain gave the commencement address at
Jerry Falwell's Liberty University. During his 2000 presidential bid, McCain had called the Fundamentalist Baptist pastor, Falwell, an "agent of intolerance." With significant coverage during the campaign, McCain said that he would never back down from his earlier statement. His later appearance at Liberty University prompted questions about the McCain-Falwell relationship and a possible presidential run in 2008. McCain stated that Falwell is no longer that divisive figure and the two have discussed their shared values.
[http://thinkprogress.org/2006/04/02/mccain-falwell] McCain delivered a similar address at
The New School commencement in
Madison Square Garden. McCain was received by boos, jeers, and several students and professors turned their backs or waved fliers reading "McCain does not speak for me."
[http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/20/nyregion/20mccain.html?ex=1305777600&en=ad1f0f07982ece56&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss] McCain's speech mentioned his unwavering support for the Iraq War and focused on hearing opposing viewpoints, listening to each other, and the relevance of opposition in a democracy.
[http://www.opinionjournal.com/extra/?id=110008409]Former New York City mayor
Rudy Giuliani, if he runs, is considered by the pundits to be McCain's chief rival for the GOP nomination. The most recently-taken GOP survey, conducted by the
American Polling Research Institute (June 13-16, 2006), shows McCain in third place with 20% of the GOP vote for his party's nomination, behind
Condoleezza Rice (30%) and Rudy Giuliani (21%). After McCain are
Newt Gingrich (8%),
Mitt Romney (7%),
George Allen (5%),
Mike Huckabee (3%) and
Bill Frist (2%). In a hypothetical general election, McCain beat Sen.
Hillary Clinton by a 46%-42% margin, while Rice and Giuliani bested Clinton by a 53%-47% and a 49%-40% margin, respectively. Highlighting McCain's complex relationship with his own party, a recent
Gallup survey reported that 4 in 10 Republicans would find McCain an "unacceptable" choice for the 2008 GOP nomination.
[http://polipundit.com/index.php?p=14297] Among well-known figures in the Republican Party, this places him behind Giuliani (73% acceptable, 25% unacceptable) and Condoleezza Rice (68%-29%), and ahead of Newt Gingrich (45%-50%),
Jeb Bush (44%-52%), and
Dick Cheney (34%-61%).
Political views
McCain is sometimes called a "maverick senator" because of his willingness to break with the party line. Some conservatives have argued that McCain's voting record is more liberal fiscally than most Republicans, causing them to attack him in 2000 as too liberal--as a "
Republican In Name Only." He was one of only four Republicans in the entire U.S. Congress to vote against the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. He was the only Republican senator to vote against the
Telecommunications Act of 1996, which he called "the biggest rip-off since the
Teapot Dome scandal." He was also the only Republican senator to vote against the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996, which phased out many of the farming subsidy programs put into place during the Great Depression. During the Republican primaries he contrasted his position with that of Governor Bush by noting that he supported tax relief that helped payers making under $75,000. In 2001, he voted for a few amendments to decrease the cuts aimed at upper-income taxpayers and increase the relief aimed at those taxpayers towards the bottom of the scale. He ultimately voted against the second tax cut passed in 2003 and has been vocal in his opposition to permanently eliminating the
inheritance tax.
McCain supported the
2003 invasion of Iraq, the U.S. decision to overthrow the Saddam Hussein regime, of a continued military presence, and of Bush's "hawkish" foreign policy in general.
[https://www.hillnews.com/thehill/export/TheHill/Comment/ByronYork/120805.html] His speech at the
2004 Republican National Convention centered around that theme. Despite offering support for war, McCain has urged the Bush administration to make "significant policy changes" in the
Iraq War; yet, "stay the course." He criticized
The Pentagon several times, most notably concerning low troop strength in Iraq
[http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/12/05/mccain.pentagon/index.html], and has called for a diversification of Iraqi national forces to better represent the multiple ethnic groups contained within the country. He stated that the United States government must do more to keep public support high for the war, stressing that "America, Iraq and the world are better off with Saddam Hussein in prison rather than in power … and we must honor their sacrifice by seeing this mission through to victory." McCain's full speech on the matter from mid-November
2005 can be read at his Senate website.
[http://mccain.senate.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=NewsCenter.ViewSpeech&Content_id=1622]McCain has strenuously crusaded against
pork barrel spending. McCain was principally responsible for forcing a re-evaluation of the USAF
KC-767 leasing contract. He once fought against funding the construction of a new
aircraft carrier, saying the money should be spent on the 12,000 enlisted families who were on
food stamps. He has also criticized both political parties for refusing to sacrifice President Bush's
tax cuts and spending agendas in wartime. His concerns over
global warming and other environmental issues have put him at odds with the Bush administration and other Republicans. In addition, he voted against the
Federal Marriage Amendment, reaffirming his attempt to position himself as a political moderate. However, McCain is also
pro-life and said in 2006 that he would have signed the
South Dakota legislation banning almost all
abortions, although he supports exceptions for rape, incest, or the life of the mother.
[http://nationaljournal.com/mercurio.htm] McCain additionally voted with the overwhelming majority of his fellow senators in the Republican caucus to impeach and remove
Bill Clinton from office during the president's 1999 trial.
McCain has initiated legislation to find a solution to illegal immigration through
guest worker programs. His legislation coauthored with Senator Kennedy was a major focus of debate in 2006. He has supported some moves to expand immigration to the US
[http://grades.betterimmigration.com/testgrades.php3?District=AZ&VIPID=33]-includingexpansion of the
H-1B visa program (though H-1B is technically a non-immigrant visa). In 2005, he co-sponsored a bill
[http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/5/13/112653/285] with
Ted Kennedy that would expand use of guest worker visas. However, he voted for the permanent ban on the immigration of individuals living with HIV.
[http://www.thebody.com/aac/candidates.html] Speaking about the
immigration reform protests, McCain warned the Hispanic community that it may experience a backlash if too many Hispanic flags were flown during the protests.
[http://www.forbes.com/business/businesstech/feeds/ap/2006/03/31/ap2636993.html] McCain has criticized conservatives like
Rush Limbaugh for not supporting more lenient immigration laws. They in turn have criticized McCain for being a liberal on this issue.
McCain has announced that he supports the inclusion of
intelligent design teaching in schools.
[http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/politics/90069] In 2005, McCain told the Arizona Daily Star that he believes "all points of view" should be available to students.
McCain is a member of The
Republican Main Street Partnership and supports
stem cell research despite his earlier opposition to the research.
[http://www.hillnews.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/102505/stemcells.html] After a controversial meeting in Kuwait, he stated that he had "no confidence" in
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, but refused to act on his words to call for his resignation, explaining that President Bush "can have the team that he wants around him."
In late May 2006, McCain angered supporters of Republican congressional candidate
Brian Bilbray by cancelling a fundraiser planned the week before the election. Bilbray was locked in a tight special election for the House seat vacated by former Congressman
Duke Cunningham, who stepped down after a bribery scandal. Bilbray called the McCain-backed immigration bill "amnesty" for illlegal immigrants, something McCain denies. Bilbray won the election by a narrow margin in spite of the controversy.
["McCain Pulls out of Bilbray Fundraiser", San Diego Union-Tribune, 2006-05-31]Campaign finance changes
Since his involvement in the
Keating Five scandal, one of McCain's main passions in his national political career has been the topic of
campaign finance reform. In spite of voting against such measures initially, since 1992, McCain has repeatedly tried to pass legislation regulating campaign financing, finally achieving a major victory in
2002. That year,
Congress passed a key "campaign finance reform bill", the "
Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002", co-sponsored by Senator
Russ Feingold and hence also known as the McCain-Feingold bill. It was immediately challenged on free speech grounds. The American Civil Liberties Union argued publicly that it "believes that key elements of Shays-Meehan (House version of "McCain-Feingold") violate the First Amendment right to free speech because the legislation contains provisions that would violate the constitutionally protected right of the people to express their opinions about issues through broadcast advertising if they mention the name of a candidate and restrict soft money contributions and uses of soft money for no constitutionally justifiable reason."
The new law was narrowly upheld by the
Supreme Court on
December 10,
2003, in an expedited hearing and ruling.
In 2006, McCain and Congressional allies proposed further controls and regulations on campaigning, advocating and politicking. Their proposed lobbying reform legislation would require extensive record keeping, accounting, financial controls and oversight from organizations, individuals and firms which engage in any activities that might be construed as lobbying, advertising for/against, organizing against or petitioning legislators and government officials.
"Gang of 14"
On May 23, 2005, McCain was one of fourteen "moderate" senators to forge a compromise on the Democrats' use of the judicial
filibuster, thus blocking the Republican leadership's attempt to implement the so-called "
nuclear option". Under the agreement, senators would retain the power to filibuster a judicial nominee, the Democrats would agree to use this power against Bush nominees only in an "extraordinary circumstance", the Republicans involved would agree to vote against the nuclear option if implemented, and three of the most contested Bush
appellate court nominees (
Janice Rogers Brown,
Priscilla Owen and
William Pryor) would receive a vote by the full Senate.
Detention of extrajudicial prisoners
Senator McCain, as a former POW, has particular sensitivity to the issue of the detention and interrogation of detainees from the
War on Terror. On
October 3,
2005, Senator McCain introduced the
McCain Detainee Amendment to the Defense Appropriations bill for 2005. On
October 5,
2005, the United States Senate voted 90-9 to support the amendment.
[http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=109&session=1&vote=00249] This amendment would establish
FM 34-52 Intelligence Interrogation as the standard for interrogation of all detainees held in Department of Defense custody, including those held by the
Central Intelligence Agency in the
War on Terror. The amendment would claim to prohibit cruel, inhumane, and degrading treatment and follow sections of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The Amendment was initially opposed by the
Bush administration, particularly Vice-President
Dick Cheney. Before the vote supporting the amendment, the White House threatened to veto any language limiting the use of torture on suspected terrorists. However, due to the size of the majority voting in favor, this was not an option. The White House then sought alternative language which would exempt CIA operatives from the torture ban. The Senate refused the compromise.
On
December 15, President Bush announced that he accepted McCain's terms and will "make it clear to the world that this government does not torture and that we adhere to the international convention of torture, whether it be here at home or abroad."
[http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/12/15/torture.bill/] Despite this, on December 30th, in what was possibly the most controversial of his many
signing statements, President Bush reserved what he interpreted to be his constitutional right to torture in order to avoid further terrorist attacks.
[http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2005/12/20051230-8.html]*
Senator McCain's Newsweek Article: "Torture's Terrible Toll".
* In 1998, McCain was chastised for reportedly making an off-color joke at a Republican fundraiser about President Clinton's daughter, Chelsea, saying "Why is
Chelsea Clinton so ugly? Because her father is
Janet Reno." McCain later apologized to President Clinton and his apology was accepted.
[http://www.salon.com/news/1998/06/25newsb.html]* McCain has acknowledged engaging in extramarital affairs upon returning from Vietnam. While he was in Vietnam, his wife Carol had been severely injured in a car accident. Upon returning home in 1973, McCain found his wife to be very different from when he had married her. He soon began engaging in extramarital affairs and in 1979, met a young, attractive, and wealthy Cindy Hensley. A year later, McCain sought a divorce from Carol and a month after that, he married Cindy. McCain has accepted full responsibility for the divorce and remains on good terms with Carol, who said in 2000, "I'm crazy about John McCain and I love him to pieces."
[http://www.dailyhowler.com/h030900_1.shtml] His first wife, Carol, has supported McCain in every election of his career, including his run for the presidency in 2000.
* Joan Molinaro, Bruce De Cell, Grace Godshalk and Peter Gadiel of "9/11 Families for a Secure America" accused McCain of "screaming at them" during a chance encounter with McCain when they criticized his proposed immigration reform bills, which they felt were not strict enough in stopping terrorists from crossing the southern border.
[http://www.911fsa.org/articles/art2006mar15.html]* McCain is Chairman of the Board of Directors of the
International Republican Institute, which has been accused by a former U.S. ambassador to Haiti of undermining negotiations between
Jean-Bertrand Aristide and his opposition after the contested 2000 election.
[http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/29/international/americas/29haiti.html?ex=1296190800&en=803d683287507b6f&ei=5089]McCain has made appearances in various entertainment media. He was criticized for his cameo in the 2005 summer movie
Wedding Crashers. The movie contained several scenes of brief nudity and prompted some critics to accuse McCain of hypocrisy due to his earlier criticisms of Hollywood for creating too many movies of that style
[http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/07/31/wcain31.xml&sSheet=/news/2005/07/31/ixworld.html].
Matt Drudge of the conservative
Drudge Report, commenting on McCain's appearance, referred to the film as a "boob raunch fest." McCain responded during an appearance on
The Tonight Show with
Jay Leno by joking that he is "working with boobs all the time in Washington."
McCain hosted the October 12,
2002 episode of
Saturday Night Live, making him the second U.S. Senator to host the show (the first was Senator
Paul Simon).
He is a frequent guest on the nationally syndicated radio program
Imus in the Morning.
McCain has appeared as a
guest on
The Daily Show with
Jon Stewart at least six times - most recently on
July 24,
2006 - and has also given video interviews to the program. One of his interviews with Stewart can be found on
The Daily Show's Indecision 2004 DVD set.
In the 2005 documentary
Why We Fight by
Eugene Jarecki, McCain is interviewed and gives his opinion on the ties between
Dick Cheney and
Halliburton.
During a November 2005 appearance on
The View, McCain was asked about the rumors of a possible run for president in 2008. McCain responded, "Except for making my kids sing
Hail to the Chief, I never think of myself as president."
He appeared on
Late Night with Conan O'Brien in 2005 in a bit entitled
Secrets.
[http://www.nbc.com/nbc/Late_Night_with_Conan_O'Brien/celebritysecrets/mccain.shtml]McCain made a cameo appearance on the fifth season of
24 from the
FOX network. The episode, in which McCain had a non-speaking role as an unidentified bureaucrat who delivers a file folder to one of the characters, was broadcast in the
United States on
February 6,
2006.
McCain lives with his second wife
Cindy Hensley McCain in
Phoenix. She is the chair of the large
Anheuser-Busch beer and liquor distributor Hensley Distributing founded by her father,
[http://www.mccain2000.com/contents/welcome/biographies/cindy.shtml]. Cindy suffered a stroke in April 2004 due to high blood pressure, but appears to have made a full recovery.
[http://www.azcentral.com/specials/special39/articles/0417mccain17.html]McCain is a member of the
Episcopal Church.
[http://www.usnews.com/usnews/news/election/mccain.htm]][http://www.ontheissues.org/Senate/John_McCain.htm] McCain has been treated for recurrent
skin cancer, including
melanoma, in 1993, 2000, and 2002. Some media sources have suggested that this may be linked to his heavy sun exposure in Vietnam. Since then he has become active in promoting awareness of skin cancers.
He has seven children and four grandchildren. McCain adopted his first wife Carol's sons (Doug and Andy), and he and Carol had a daughter, (Sydney). John has three biological children with his wife Cindy — Meghan,
Columbia University (2007); Jack,
United States Naval Academy (2009); and James,
Brophy College Preparatory (2006); plus he and Cindy adopted their youngest daughter (Bridget) after discovering her in a
Bangladeshi orphanage run by
Mother Teresa. McCain's son James enlisted in the
Marine Corps in 2006, and will begin
recruit training in September 2006.
On
September 28,
2005,
The Eisenhower Institute awarded him the Eisenhower Leadership Prize. The prize recognizes individuals whose lifetime accomplishments reflect
Dwight D. Eisenhower's legacy of integrity and leadership.
*Senator McCain is a good personal friend of
Sopranos actors
James Gandolfini and
Tony Sirico, as well as shock-rock musician
Alice Cooper and
radio talk show host
Don Imus.
*Senator McCain tried to persuade
FIFA to ban
Iran from the
2006 World Cup.
[MaCain Introduces Resolution Calling On FIFA To Ban Iran From Soccer World Cup]*A 2005 made-for-TV movie, "Faith of My Fathers," was based on John McCain's memoirs of his experience in the Vietnam War.
[Faith of My Fathers at the Internet Movie Database. Retrieved on 2006-08-01. ]*McCain's height is 5' 7" (170 cm).
Character Is Destiny: Inspiring Stories Every Young Person Should Know and Every Adult Should Remember by John McCain,
Mark Salter (Random House, October 2005) ISBN 1400064120
Why Courage Matters: The Way to a Braver Life by John McCain, Mark Salter (Random House, April 2004) ISBN 1400060303
Odysseus in America by
Jonathan Shay,
Max Cleland, John S. McCain (Scribner, November 2002) ISBN 0743211561
Worth the Fighting for: A Memoir by John McCain, Mark Salter (Random House, September 2002) ISBN 0375505423
Unfinished Business: Afghanistan, the Middle East and Beyond--Defusing the Dangers That Threaten America's Security by
Harlan Ullman, John S. McCain (Citadel Press, June 2002) ISBN 0806524316
Faith of My Fathers by John McCain, Mark Salter (Random House, August 1999) ISBN 0375501916
The Reminiscences of Admiral John S. McCain, Jr., U.S. Navy (retired) by John S. McCain (U.S. Naval Institute, 1999) ISBN B0006RY8ZK
*
International Republican Institute*
Whisper campaign
*
John McCain's Senate website.
*
The Draft McCain Movement - primary website advocating for a John McCain presidency in 2008.
*
Arizona Republic's Seven Chapter Special on John McCain, 1999*
Sen. John McCain - 2008 Presidential Wire *
Nation Magazine Cover Story: The Real John McCain*
Senator John McCain Offers 10 Ways That You, Too, Can Support The War Effort*
Senator John S. McCain's Acceptance Remarks at the 2005 Eisenhower Leadership Prize Banquet*
Why Is McCain So Supportive Of Bush & Cheney?*
McCain interview *http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060325/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq
*
2008 Republican Rankings (by Democrats)*
John McCain on the Issues List of issue positions and quotes.
*
record maintained by the Washington Post*
A look at John McCain on the POW/MIA Issue by The Village Voice{{Persondata
NAME=McCain III, John Sidney | ALTERNATIVE NAMES=John McCain | SHORT DESCRIPTION=Senator from Arizona | DATE OF BIRTH=August 29, 1936 | PLACE OF BIRTH= | DATE OF DEATH= | PLACE OF DEATH=
|
