John McCain is a republican senator from Arizona. He lost to Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential election, but had a big impact on American politics. He was a brave naval pilot during the Vietnam war.
John McCain was born into a naval family in 1936. His father was a naval officer so he too joined the navy. During the Vietnam War he was assigned to the aircraft carrier USS Forrestal as a pilot. It was 1967 and President Johnson approved the bombing campaign "Operation Rolling Thunder." McCain flew A-4 Skyhawks, which was a light bomber plane. McCain was frustrated with the inaction and was critical of how the leadership was pursuing victory in Vietnam. One moment of action was when McCain was a part of was the USS Forrestal Fire. It was an accident caused by an electric malfunction and it killed 134 sailors. McCain was a hero and escaped his plane which was on fire and helped other sailors. He even suffered injuries when a bomb exploded. He continued to serve aboard a new aircraft carrier the USS Oriskany. Once again he proved his heroism and he received the Navy Commendation Medal and the Bronze Star Medal for his bombing missions in North Vietnam.
John McCain displayed bravery when he survived 5 years as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam. He was on a bombing mission when suddenly his plane was shot down. He had to eject but fractured his arms and leg and parachuted into a lake. He was found by North Vietnamese troops where he was beating up and bayoneted. He was sent to the Hỏa Lò Prison, which is infamously known as the "Hanoi Hilton." He was tortured by his captors because he refused to give up information and he not given the medical care he desperately needed. He only got treated when the Vietnamese discovered that John McCain was the son of John S. McCain Jr. who was an important admiral. This also made his capture a big headline around the world. He was then sent to solitary confinement for two years.
The truest testament of the bravery of John McCain was when he was offered release but declined. His father had become the commander of all US operations in Vietnam so the North Vietnamese wanted to let him go for propaganda purposes. McCain refused because he did not want to help the Vietnamese seem merciful, it would have violated a military code, but most importantly he did not want to leave his fellow soldiers behind because he thought that they should all be equal. When he refused he said he would not return unless everyone else was released. This resistance led the North Vietnamese to torture McCain. He was tied up and heavily beaten continuously. Finally after five and a half years, he returned home. However because of the torture he endured he is permanently disabled and cannot raise his hands up.
After Vietnam McCain became a politician and continued to fight for equality and justice, like how he refused to be given preferential treatment in Vietnam. Although he is republican, some of his policies are very bipartisan and he was criticized by the far right conservatives. Some of his anti-conservative policies were being against Bush's tax cuts, supporting an immigration reform to give citizenship to illegal aliens, and supporting a bill to combat global warming.
This shows that John McCain was more than just the republican that lost to Obama in the 2008 presidential election.
Sources:
https://campaignstops.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/02/04/why-conservatives-dont-like-mccain/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_McCain
I found this post really interesting as I never really knew much about McCain. Reading through this post, I was able to gain a deeper appreciation for what McCain has done and why he's known as a war hero. Additionally, looking deeper into his title as a maverick in Congress, it is clear to see that McCain is one of the few politicians that aim to be bipartisan. While he is held to his party, often times, he does not vote along with what the Republican party stands for. Rather, he votes off of his own morals and what he believes is right. Instead of blindly following what others tell him to do, McCain stands up for his own beliefs regardless of what side of the political spectrum they fall in. In this way, the morals that McCain held during the Vietnam war are just as evident and goes to show how being bipartisan is still possible in the current political climate.
ReplyDeleteSOURCES : https://www.cnn.com/2017/07/28/politics/john-mccain-maverick-health-care/index.html
I also liked this post because I notice in society we do not pay much attention to politicians who run for president and lose. Throughout history we only would focus on who won and how they impacted the country but you made this post to inform us of the loser. We do not always know the impact the losing candidate has and your post was very informative and helpful in seeing the bigger picture rather than a presidential election. He was actually helping the country either way. He comes from a pretty hard place and demonstrates the perseverance that we all should exhibit in crisis in our lives.
ReplyDeleteI was shocked to learn about all of the horrors that John McCain has lived through and overcome. While I was familiar with him as a politician before reading this post, I had no idea everything he had been through. Unfortunately, John's life has continued to be full of struggles. He was diagnosed with brain cancer, which has continued to develop, and he has had to missed a lot of sessions and votes in the Senate over the past year for treatment. Hopefully he will be able to make a recovery and continue to be a truly democratic politician, voting the opinions of the voters and himself, and following his conscience rather than his party leaders. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/wp/2017/12/13/john-mccain-battling-brain-cancer-in-walter-reed-from-effects-of-treatment/?utm_term=.eb9b2afc3a6f
ReplyDeleteThis was a really interesting post. I think that when we see a politician who has run for president and lost, we see them only as a loser. Especially if you leaned more towards the ideology of the other candidate. It's very easy to forget that even a politician is a person who has a story. I did some reading and apparently McCain was nicknamed "Punk" and "McNasty" during his wrestling years. He was also called "the white tornado" in his later years in life for graying prematurely.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2007/02/08/10-things-you-didnt-know-about-john-mccain
It is interesting to see that someone of high moral integrity and self-discipline had lost in the elections. But it was clear to the Americans who had more experience in the political world as McCain's presidential campaign committee came nowhere close to what Obama had. And since Obama already had a majority of the black American voters, it would be a complete miracle if McCain did actually win the elections. Although he was a war hero, had demonstrated incredible leadership skills in military, and has firm belief in himself, it was not enough to convince normal civilians of what he could do for them. To the Americans voting McCain was too much of a "good guy".
ReplyDeletehttps://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/11/why_did_john_mccain_lose.html
https://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2017/10/17/john-mccain-full-speech-liberty-medal.cnn