Thoughts on McCain
Since his death last Saturday, I’ve stayed pretty quiet about John McCain and the legacy he left behind, but wanted to share a few of my own thoughts about that legacy. With 60 years of public service, which included 5 1/2 years as a POW in Hanoi, McCain certainly earned every bit of respect he’s now receiving by millions around the world. He was a creature of the Republican party, but also stood against that party many times, especially when it was dead wrong and pushing some idiotic or cruel policy that helped no one except its base of bigots and special interests. That part of John McCain I’ll miss greatly.
Having said that, there is one huge stain on his legacy for which I’ll never forgive him. When he he ran for the presidency in 2008, McCain abandoned the straight talk express and, as Stephen Colbert aptly put it, “climbed onto the the crazy train”. Remember that? McCain, always known for common sense and a fierce adherence to the truth, starting ranting like a teabagger and social warrior trying to get the base behind him instead of Romney (who was doing the same thing), and ideologues Mike Huckabee and Ron Paul. It was shameful. But the worst thing he did after winning the nomination? He gave a voice and a face to the Know-Nothing Idiotic Wing of the Republican party by naming Sarah Palin to the ticket. That one action opened the floodgates to a tsunami of bullshit, lies, and coded racist rants that the fringes of the party lapped up like spilled Boone’s Farm on a dance hall floor. My God, what a disaster. Palin would spout word salad about “death panels” or “palling around with terrorists”, and all of a sudden the airwaves were full of it. Literally. She inflicted a new low of stupidity and falsehood never before seen in American politics.
McCain gave the alt-right exactly what we didn’t need, which was a megaphone that has metastasized into the slow motion train wreck that now assaults our senses on a daily basis. The GOP bears no resemblance to the business and freedom friendly party of the last half of the 20th century, having morphed into a Russian-loving, fascist movement that actually believes that Trump is some God-fearing messiah rather than the spray painted, hair weaved, lying shitbag that is reality. The GOP of Lincoln is dead and has become the Trumpist Party which gushes about the beauty and grace of the nude model from Slovenia who is now the First Lady, and actually believes that the FBI, CIA, Justice Department, Homeland Security, and all non-Trumpists are corrupt conspirators out to get him. They believe his denials about Russian interference in our elections and his campaign’s involvement in it, and support the convicted criminals who ran his campaign while refusing to honor McCain, who ironically paved the way for this rot that is coming from the head.
In total, McCain’s 60 years of public service is not totally negated by his selection of Palin, but that decision surely did a tremendous amount of damage to our country that will take decades to reverse (if ever), and history will not look kindly upon it.
There is a place for anger, and THIS is it.
McCain may have been a nice guy with crappy politics. Don’t care! He had crappy politics so he is a crappy person as that was his contribution. His war record is nothing to me, although I’m sad that he or anyone had to suffer for an illegal war to protect rich people’s property.
1You said it far better than I could, but Palin is the stain on McCain
2mccain had serious ptsd…understandably, and probably not suffiently treated. not an excuse for some of his behaviour, just a reason. as a vietnam vet, i have seen this manifested to various degrees in many of my fellow marines and friends….hair trigger temper, unpredictable, few deep friendships, etc.
his preferred councel was with a small cadre of military friends…some of them fellow pows, who along with others, gave him some very bad advice and recommendations.
when he took a stand on principal he was an assest to his country.
hand salute for his service outside of the area’s that el jefe has mentioned.
3Always wondered if someone blackmailed him into selecting Palin. Or maybe he couldn’t stand any of the alternatives and this was his way of shoving a finger up their nose. If so, it proved that he did not have any good sense when he got pissed off. Especially by the crop of governors who wanted to be president that year. Did not mind at all him giving the Golden Gibbon the finger on the healthcare situation. Not at all. And I can still say without smirking, even psychologically, God speed John McCain. May you have fair winds and a following sea.
4McCain was a good person who sometimes made very poor decisions. Considering some of the poor decisions I have made in life, I cannot condemn him for that. To quote James T. Adams:
5There is so much good in the worst of us, and so much bad in the best of us, that it ill behooves any of us to find fault with the rest of us.
McCain gave a shockingly gracious concession speech, in light of the nasty jerk he’d been for the previous 4-5 months. In retrospect, his choice of Palin was not just a mistake but a tragic one, since it led to the enthroning of a racist moron and climate-change denier as President of the United States. McCain was in some respects an honorable man, but he made some grave mistakes and people around the world will be paying the price for generations.
6An individual who got into the Naval academy exclusively based upon his family connections. Affirmative action benefinchery who railed against it for others.
7Born on the government credit card, educated by the government and fed at government trough his whole life but remember that government assistence is evil and weakens the morals of all others.
I can’t remember but all reports were that he was a lousy pilot ( “black” ace = one who wrecks 5 of his own forces planes) and only got assignmnet training because of nepotism, you know affirmative action for inept causasians.
In the model of newt gingrich he divorced first wife for a younger richer woman who could keep him in style he desired.
Even then that wasn’t enough so he went after even more slop in federal trough with keating and saving and loan scam where anyone else would have ended up in jail. Barely got his wrist slapped for that since he was a McCain, and criminals with proper heredity mustn’t be held responsible.
Granted his behavior while in captivity has been reported as honorable so he did have a saving grace.
After 2000 primary loss to the twit sold out government for party loyalty.
War monger remember his charming ditty of “Bomb bomb Iran” ( music Beach Boys Barbara Ann)?
Even after being insulted continued to support and work for demented donnie.
Put party in front of country by waiting on resignation until party exclusively would have say on his successor not voters.
So in entire time of life he lived exclusively off of government largesse while railing against benefits for others.
Pushed for war and more war every oppurtunity he had.
Legitimized whack jobs by nominating caribou barbie showing ignorance was no barrier when looking for transitory political edge, so once again selling out country for party.
Defended demented donnie nd helped push his agenda tax cuts, bankrupting social security, defending police brutality and generally being a political coward and hypocritical human.
Will grant 2 moments of some honor – time as POW and Obamacare care repeal vote.
As for defending Obama, or as he refered to him as “that one”, wouldn’t have been necessary if he had not legitimized nutcase caucaus with his vp selection.
So on the balance more negative then positive so on objective scale hardly worth more mention then what agnew got on his death but on relative scale of thuglicans a saint. Doesn’t show anything positive for him just how low the thuglicans have sunk that he could be considered to be an “honorable” man.
I know it’s too late, but Sarah Palin is not invited to any of the scheduled funeral events.
President Obama on the other hand was personally asked to deliver one of the eulogies.
8I’m trying to remember; did he stand up for Max McClellan or John Kerry, or Tammy Duckworth when the GOP attacked them? I’m also thinking of all the votes he took to support the things that Trump is doing.
9To Mary Lynn
10No according to McCain only thuglicans were “true” veterans.
Only time of praise was when it was meaningless during any campaign thuglican aims were more important then honor, decency or honesty.
Party before country. Money before people. Self aggrandization before all else.
McCain refused to be released unless all his fellow POWs were as well. Have to admire his courage. He showed up and saved the ACA, again an admirable thing to do. He spoke out against this illegitimate president, even in death. Of course, he was imperfect, but banning Dump from his funeral, robbing him of another platform to make it all about him, the icing on the cake.
11I will remember his positive contributions.
K has nailed it.
Palin was George W with breasts.
12Agree with most here, McCain was a deeply flawed person with a few shining honorable points among many failures.
13He would never have been admitted to Annapolis if his dad and granddad weren’t Admirals. He certainly wouldn’t have been tracked as a naval aviator, nor continued in it after making various major FU’s for the same nepotist ‘legacy’ factors. Nor been allowed to continue aviating after hotdogging another CFIT (in Italy), with the loss of yet another expensive aircraft.
Glad to see somebody mention his corrupt Keating Five savings and loan entanglements, haven’t seen a whisper of that in the news accounts. He also married into a wealthy mob family which facilitated his political career greatly.
His pick of the Tundra Tart as VP running mate was a doozy, leading as mentioned, to the MAGAots propelling the most corrupt, malevolent, malcompetent SOBOTUS ever into our WH. I’ve personally seen the same RWNJ’s who slavered over Sarah keep their woodies wound up on Trump.
He could be as small and petty as the Mango Mussolini, and fittingly flipped his last bird in the face of His Flatulence.
R.I.P.
John McCain.
John McCain was a terrible pilot and an even worse student.
John McCain was to be discharged from the Navy for failure to thrive when his deployed carrier reached home port for refit.
John McCain was in his milieu as a POW.
John McCain … like any other POW is owed … owed by the government; owed … by the governed; owed peace.
14I am disappointed in the comments about John McCain. Yes and he did admit he was flawed. Yes, Palin was a terrible choice , yes we may not agreed with his politics, but I believe he loved and wanted the best for this country. RIP.
15George in Lee County, That’s an insult to the rather dumb George Bush. The problem is Palin was never vetted. People assumed that a governor of a really big state must know some stuff- but that was totally untrue. She knows nothing, and isn’t interested in learning.
The reality of the “virtuous mother of 5” has become clear with the family antics since she more or less left the national stage (although folks who followed Alaskan bloggers were in on the real story from the beginning). She’s found her niche, though, selling detox tea: http://www.the-immoral-minority.com/sarah-palin-is-now-officially-in-the-poop-tea-selling-business/
16Note that Palin is not invited to anything associated with McCain’s passing. I’m sure that wasn’t an oversight.
17For an even more blistering assessment, see the Rude Pundit’s post a few days ago.
Was there ever a more frustrating, confounding politician than John McCain?
Pro: a brave POW who endured years of torture.
Con: the rest of his military record.
Pro: McCain/Feingold
Con: the Keating scandal
Pro: his refuting the crazy lady calling Obama an Arab during the campaign. And his grace in conceding defeat.
Con: Sarah Palin and all the attendant craziness. And buying in to all the rhetoric.
Pro: a staunch opponent of torture.
Con: a staunch proponent of bombing pretty much anyone.
Pro: that transcendent moment of defiance when he saved Obamacare.
Con: a voting record which, for all his Maverick posturing, nearly always toed the party line.
Frustrating, because he seemed to have within him the potential to be so much more than he could have been. But he couldn’t quite reach it and draw it out. Those moments of grace shine out like rays of sun through a bank of threatening clouds.
The Bard says it best:
…and the elements
18So mix’d in him that Nature might stand up,
And say to all the world, “This was a man!”
4 years of George W. Bush … and then another 4 years of W because tens of million idiots reelected him … and Palin was the straw that broke the camel’s back of our country? Gimme a break! (And that’s not even going back to the crazy GOP in the Clinton years, George H.W. Bush who I’ve always figured was smart enough to know better but didn’t, or Reagan when the country was run by an astrologer.)
Remember 2000 and the miscegenation rumors about McCain’s daughter Bridget spread by George W. Bush’s campaign (in the SC GOP primary?)? How would most fathers react? McCain hugged and slobbered over Bush for the next 8 years … and even asked him to deliver a eulogy at his funeral.
McCain’s reputation for “straight talk” and being a “maverick” was carefully cultivated and was fertilized by the credulous media.
19Let’s not forget his remarks about Chelsea Clinton either. No honorable adult says things like that. Ever.
20I agree with you completely. If he had not caved and let the GOP choose that idiot Palin, he may well have become president. Many Democrats I know have said they considered him – until Palin.
It disturbs me to see the Alt-righters besmirch his legacy as they are doing by spreading the things that have been shown to be wrong as an absolute fact. I cannot stand for anyone to call any POW (especially one who was held as long as McCain) a traitor. And those who never served should be doubly ashamed of themselves.
21mccain was an individual who placed self and wealth above everything else and from his days as an unworthy cadet, to inept pilot, criminal seanator ( keating 5), promoter of war, bigot and generally foul piece of human waste was successful in only masquerading as a respectable human being and conning all to many to overlooke his frequent destructive actions towards the country the world and everyone but himself.
22Came from a family of slaveholders and never lost that attitude.
What Nancy said…a real man does not go after girl child to make fun of her looks. No apology that he made can atone for that. And he has even more to atone for Sara Palin.
Thank you for being the only place where we can be honest about McCain’s record.
23At the end of it all, however, I think McCain understood what he had done.
In addition to disinviting 45, he also kept Palin and two of his top campaign people off the guest list. I can accept that. It definitely unleashed the crazy and at the end of it all, he understood how he was film-flammed into accepting it.
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