John McCain

[LouiseVargas]

John McCain just gave his acceptance speech after wining the New Hampshire primary. He was bloviating worse than O'Reilly. I wonder if old pudding face thinks he will ever be President. He won't.

[Kermit]

John McCain just gave his acceptance speech after wining the New Hampshire primary. He was bloviating worse than O'Reilly. I wonder if old pudding face thinks he will ever be President. He won't.

I agree he won't become President. I know too much about him and while I use to admire him because he was a POW for heavens sake and how much more honorable do you get then that, but it is his status of not speaking up or taking a stand many times on important issues that made me have to come to the conclusion that his days as a POW made him do whatever they wanted in order to make it through. That is not what a leader in this day and age should be. And unfortunately it is easy to see that weakness in him. I watch too much Survivor and those that outlast are the ones who were weak and did nothing and don't really deserve to win in my way of thinking.

Bush changed the world with retaliation war in Iraq and the Iranian's ain't that far behind in provoking us into a war,
so we need a leader who can stand up and take a stand diplomatically and effectively and not be a yes man.

"Gorbachev tear down that wall" and mean it!
For those who are too young to remember the Berlin wall in Germany - I have touched it - it smelled funny.

[pdh3]

I see John McCain in a  bit of a different light. I admire him for having the guts to endure what he did in Viet Nam. And I believe he is patriotic right down to his core. But I also wonder if maybe he isn't too much of a military man to even consider another option first. I don't know if diplomacy is in his mindset. He's an old soldier first, and everything is filtered through his training as a Navy man. Would he be able to equally weigh all options, and entertain any other ideas? Would he consider the opinions of the diplomatic community to be a viable as those of his military advisors?
I may not agree with his views on everything, but I do think he is honorable, and that counts for a lot. I don't necessarily think he's the best man for the job as President, but I wouldn't be sickened by his election if it did happen, the way I was when Bush was elected. I do believe he is extremely intelligent, and he has suffered in his life, so maybe he has some compassion for others.
I'm not going to vote for him, but he isn't the worst candidate out there either.

[GreatOwl]

I most certainly agree that he is an honorable man.  He has been a very good politician for is area.  I listened to him after the State of the Union last night.  He made it very clear he feels President Bush is on the right track and that we should "Stay The Course."  While there have been some possible military gains because of the "surge" it is clear that it is not because the Iraq "is stepping up as we step down."  There have been absolutely no gains towards the political goals.  Those were to have been reached by September and have yet to even have any significant progress.

We are now embarking on a version of sending or increasing troops back to Afghanistan.  It is clear without our money and military these countries will not survive.  While I have empathy for all of this, I also feel we need to pay attention to our own domestic problems which have been neglected during the Bush administration.  Our "allies" have abandoned our side in favor of dealing with their own internal problems and pressures.  We can not and should not continue this alone.

My assessment of John McCain is that if you feel that President Bush's policies and directions have been beneficial for our own needs then your vote should go to McCain.  Personally, I have concerns about voting for someone who has such a strong military background in today's climate.  We need to find a balance between attacking our domestic problems and actively making it clear to our allies that they need to step up and be counted.

[LouiseVargas]

Thank you, Great Owl. I learn so much from you. And AMEN to your post.

[SteveDinMD]

I think Senator McCain is given WAY too much credit for being "honorable."  People should recall that Representative Duke Cunningham was a naval officer, a fighter pilot, and a bona fide war hero in Vietnam.  He was also a flying ace, a recipient of the Navy Cross, and an instructor at Top Gun -- achievements not shared by Senator McCain.  By comparison, McCain's military career was unremarkable, and reached its zenith when he was taken prisoner after seeing relatively little action.  Representative Cunningham, for his part, pleaded guilty in 2005 to numerous counts of bribery, fraud, tax evasion, and conspiracy, thus proving that even war heroes are not immune to lapses in judgement, greed, and even criminality. 

Though never convicted of any crime, Senator McCain has nevertheless made poor judgement and selfishness his life's work since retiring from the Navy.  After she stood by him during his years of captivity, McCain utterly betrayed his wife Carol.  He engaged in numerous marital infidelities and eventually left her to marry his current wife, a woman much younger than himself who just so happened to be the daughter of James Willis Hensley, a fabulously wealthy beer distributor with a shady past.  Hensley's privately owned business had sales in 2000 exceeding $200 Million.  It is especially noteworthy that it was his new father-in-law who financed McCain's early political campaigns.  Since first gaining election by marrying into money, McCain has made a habit of catering to wealthy special interests.  Most infamously, McCain was censured by the Senate as one of the "Keating Five," a bi-partisan group of Senators caught up in an influence buying scheme by Charles Keating, who was attempting to intimidate Federal banking regulators from aggressively investingating his business practices.  Keating later pleaded guilty to various Federal crimes in connection with the failure of his Lincoln Savings thrift, which cost U.S. taxpayers over $3 Billion.  To this day, McCain tirelessly represents powerful Arizona agricultural interests (which benefit from cheap immigrant labor) by obstructing in the U.S. Senate any attempt to stem the tide of illegal immigration through enhanced border security.  This is not what I would call "guarding the public interest." 

In conclusion, I don't like John McCain; I don't trust John McCain, and I don't respect John McCain.  Frankly, I can't see myself ever voting for John McCain.  Neither will I vote for any of the Democrats.  If McCain is the Republican nominee, I will probably leave my Presidential ballot blank.  Either that, or I'll enter a write-in as a protest. 

[GreatOwl]

There are a few items there I didn't know, Steve.  Thanks for the update.  Your case is well stated and a basis for your own feelings.  Thank you.

[LouiseVargas]

Hi Steve,

Thanks for another informative post. I don't think McCain is honorable. I really hate to say that. I don't want to see him elected.

I did not know that McCain divorced the wife that stood by him for years. I do understand that men of his age often dump the first wife and get a younger second wife ... not to mention that McCain's second wife came from a family with money. It kind of reminds me of Paulus marrying Anita because she had family money and John Kerry marrying Heinz Ketchup for her money. I'm not saying this is wrong.

I remember Charles Keating very well, but I have only a faint memory of the Keating Five. My mother invested $20K in a money market fund at Lincoln Savings and Loan located on Sunset and Vine. Her friend, Esther, who used to live above me, also invested $20K. My mother kept a close eye on her money, reading newspapers and magazines every day. As she saw trouble coming from Keating, she sold her $20K investment and urged Esther to sell immediately or she could lose her money. Esther blew my mother off and did not sell and lost her $20K as Keating went down and was prosecuted. She was ticked off at my mother for not urging her strongly enough. My mom said Esther had no common sense.

Anyway, thanks for triggering my memory about Keating and McCain and Lincoln Savings and Loan.