There probably hasn't been a politician I've had more of a rollercoaster relationship with than John McCain, who passed away at the age of 81 this past Saturday. I tend to agree with Democratic politicians 67% to 90% of the time, while I only tend to agree with Republican politicians 0% to 25% of the time. John McCain, on the other hand, never seemed to fit in any single box. He was by no means progressive in his view of the world or how to improve our country, yet he was often called a RINO (Republican In Name Only) by those to his right on the political spectrum. Yes, John McCain was called "the maverick" for a reason.
I've always felt McCain's unsuccessful attempts at winning the presidency were largely centered around the fact he didn't fit in any neat little box, especially in our increasingly partisan times. When he ran in 2000, as audiences for Fox News and right-wing talk radio continued to increase, he was branded by these media outlets as "too liberal." This ultimately led to him pulling out of the race, as George W. Bush became the party's nominee. After the election and re-election of Bush, McCain's voting record and rhetoric appeared to shift to the right. This may very well have been due to the fact he knew he wanted to run for the highest office in the land once again. Branded as too liberal eight years prior, the Arizona Senator then decided to go the opposite route, and this strategy paid off for a time, as he became the Republican Party's nominee for the 2008 presidential election. Of course, these noticeable changes in voting, rhetoric, and branding harmed him in the lead-up to the general election, as Democratic nominee Barack Obama and his team were quick to point out McCain's flip-flops and contradictions, asking the country, "Which John McCain are we going to get? How can we know? Can we afford to take that risk?" That may have been the reason Obama held a slight lead on McCain before the start of the recession, at which point McCain, a member of the same party as the president at the time, ultimately became toast.
Since that time, McCain has talked about increasing our presence in wars overseas one day, leaving me to shake my head; before voting to maintain key components of the Affordable Care Act the next, leaving me to give him a thumb's up. This has been our relationship in a nutshell ever since I started following the world of politics. Through all twists and turns, ups and downs, though, while I've never voted for John McCain, I've always respected him. The man went through more in his 81 years than most anyone could experience in ten lifetimes. Hell, he endured more in those 5.5 years as a POW than most of us will experience in 81. John McCain was strong, brave, independent, and principled. I often may not have agreed with him on issues, but I always respected his position. While many politicians, especially on the right, tend to give in to conspiracy-loving supporters of theirs for financial purposes, McCain never gave into them. An iconic moment in the run up to the 2008 election exemplified this, as when the Arizona Senator was approached by a woman hurling Barack-Obama conspiracies at him during a rally, he took the mic away from her, and said unabashedly that her claims weren't true; that Obama was a good and decent family man; and that the two just held different viewpoints on how to move America forward. It would have been easy for him to have allowed the woman to finish her statement, to laugh off her ridiculousness, and not say anything to rebut the outlandish claims. That's not who John McCain was, though. Agree or disagree with him, he fought for what he believed was right, and what a fighter he was. The man frustrated me to no end at times during his political career, as I couldn't figure him out, but that's just who John McCain was, and both Congress and the world are going to sorely miss him. Both would be well served if we had more like him. RIP, Senator McCain. I rarely say this, as I don't want to come across as cliché and disingenuous, thank you for your service.
I've always felt McCain's unsuccessful attempts at winning the presidency were largely centered around the fact he didn't fit in any neat little box, especially in our increasingly partisan times. When he ran in 2000, as audiences for Fox News and right-wing talk radio continued to increase, he was branded by these media outlets as "too liberal." This ultimately led to him pulling out of the race, as George W. Bush became the party's nominee. After the election and re-election of Bush, McCain's voting record and rhetoric appeared to shift to the right. This may very well have been due to the fact he knew he wanted to run for the highest office in the land once again. Branded as too liberal eight years prior, the Arizona Senator then decided to go the opposite route, and this strategy paid off for a time, as he became the Republican Party's nominee for the 2008 presidential election. Of course, these noticeable changes in voting, rhetoric, and branding harmed him in the lead-up to the general election, as Democratic nominee Barack Obama and his team were quick to point out McCain's flip-flops and contradictions, asking the country, "Which John McCain are we going to get? How can we know? Can we afford to take that risk?" That may have been the reason Obama held a slight lead on McCain before the start of the recession, at which point McCain, a member of the same party as the president at the time, ultimately became toast.
Since that time, McCain has talked about increasing our presence in wars overseas one day, leaving me to shake my head; before voting to maintain key components of the Affordable Care Act the next, leaving me to give him a thumb's up. This has been our relationship in a nutshell ever since I started following the world of politics. Through all twists and turns, ups and downs, though, while I've never voted for John McCain, I've always respected him. The man went through more in his 81 years than most anyone could experience in ten lifetimes. Hell, he endured more in those 5.5 years as a POW than most of us will experience in 81. John McCain was strong, brave, independent, and principled. I often may not have agreed with him on issues, but I always respected his position. While many politicians, especially on the right, tend to give in to conspiracy-loving supporters of theirs for financial purposes, McCain never gave into them. An iconic moment in the run up to the 2008 election exemplified this, as when the Arizona Senator was approached by a woman hurling Barack-Obama conspiracies at him during a rally, he took the mic away from her, and said unabashedly that her claims weren't true; that Obama was a good and decent family man; and that the two just held different viewpoints on how to move America forward. It would have been easy for him to have allowed the woman to finish her statement, to laugh off her ridiculousness, and not say anything to rebut the outlandish claims. That's not who John McCain was, though. Agree or disagree with him, he fought for what he believed was right, and what a fighter he was. The man frustrated me to no end at times during his political career, as I couldn't figure him out, but that's just who John McCain was, and both Congress and the world are going to sorely miss him. Both would be well served if we had more like him. RIP, Senator McCain. I rarely say this, as I don't want to come across as cliché and disingenuous, thank you for your service.
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