Free Essay

John Mccain

In: People

Submitted By bsctb24
Words 786
Pages 4
John McCain was born August 29, 1936. At Coco Solo Naval Air Station in the Panama Canal Zone. He was born to naval officer John S. McCain, Jr. and Roberta McCain. McCain’s ancestry comes from Scot-Irish Anglo-Irish and the English. His father and his grandfather on his father’s side, both became four-star United States Navy admirals. His family, including his siblings also took up various naval points in the Pacific. In 1951 his family settled in North Virginia. There John attended Episcopal high School, A private school in Alexandria. He graduated in 1954 excelling at wrestling while in High School. Following his father and grandfather, he enrolled in the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis. There he was a leader in many ways. He would often stand up for people who were getting bullied. During this time, he also became a lightweight boxer. Although he excelled in subjects such as literature and history he struggled with math. He graduated in 1958, being in the bottom ranks of his class. After graduation he was commissioned for two and a half years of training as a naval aviator in Pensacola. He completed flight school in 1960, and became a naval pilot of an air-ground attack force. He was stationed in the USS Intrepid and Enterprise in the Caribbean and Mediterranean seas. He crashed twice and once flew into a power line, but received no major injuries. On July 3, 1965, John married Carel Shepp, a model from Philadelphia. McCain adopted her two sons, Douglas and Andrew. They later had a daughter together named Sidney. In summer 1967, McCain was issued a combat assignment during the Vietnam war. Boarding the aircraft carrier USS Forrestal, he was 30 years old. On July 29, 1967, by then he was a Lieutenant commander, John was almost killed. After escaping his burning jet a bomb exploded while trying to help another pilot escape. He suffered several injuries from bomb fragments in his chest and chest. Since the Forrestal was out of commission, he volunteered for duty on the USS Oriskany. John was later captured during the war on October 26, 1967. While flying a mission over North Vietnam he was shot down by a missile over Hanoi. During the fall he fractured both arms and a leg. After regaining consciousness, North Vietnamese soldiers pulled him from the water where he had landed crushed his shoulder and stabbed him with his bayonet. After being transported to a hospital he was beaten and interrogated for information. He received medical treatment only after the Vietnamese realized that his father was a top admiral. This made the front pages of newspapers. McCain spent six weeks with marginal care and eventually was sent to a camp on the outskirts of Hanoi. He was paired with two other Americans who didn’t expect him to last a week. In March 1968, he was sent to solitary confinement where he stayed for two years. In mid 1968 McCain was offered early release because his father had just received command over all of the operations in Vietnam. McCain turned it down however, stating that every man that was taken before him would have to be released as well. In August 1968, severe torture began on McCain. Rope bindings and other methods were used to get information out of him and eventually made him sign an anti-American statement. He was finally released after five and a half years on March 4, 1973. His wife too had received crippling injuries while he was away, experiencing an automobile accident in December 1969.After grueling therapy McCain was finally reinstated and became commanding officer of a training squadron stationed in Florida. For improved statistics he was granted the Meritorious Unit Commendation. Later, McCain became the liaison for the Navy in the Senate. Later after divorcing his wife McCain married Cindy Lou Hensley on May 17, 1980 with two members of Senate as his groomsmen. Not long after this he resigned from the Navy. He received 17 military awards and decorations. He then turned his sights to politics. He was elected to congress in 1986, defeating Richard Campbell. In the 1980’s McCain received $112,000 from Charles Keating Jr. it was lawful and the senate Ethics Committee cleared him of all accusations. He would later run for president in 2000, but was beat out by President George W. Bush. He served for a fourth senate term and is now running for president. He has made quite a bit of change in the way we run the country. He knows a lot about war. Not only because he was involved in the Vietnam war, but was even a hostage for six years.

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Sarah Palins Choice for Vp

...was eminent because of the possibility of either the first African-American president or first female vice president, Sarah Palin. It was the time when economy was struggling. There were two costly ongoing wars of 8 years, subprime mortgage crisis had taken hold and the nation was hurdling towards recession. Senator McCain represented the status quo of Republican Party which was believed to be responsible for the crisis at the time. After coming in lead in Republican Primary, John McCain chose Sarah Palin as his Vice Presidential Candidate. This choice had a very positive effect in the beginning. After announcing Palin as the presumptive VP nominee, the McCain campaign received high favorability numbers and had unified the Republican Party. Contribution to the campaign went up. The Campaign had not only surpassed Obama in white women voters, but also amassed a lead of five percentage points in the Gallup polls. She was phenomenally talented and had the ability to connect with the masses. However as media researched further, people’s perception changed and they started to realize that Senator McCain’s choice was negligent and done in haste. Factors that Influenced John McCain’s Decision There were many reasons behind McCain’s choice of Palin for the VP candidate. The campaign had to do something out of the ordinary to bring the “change “. Below are few points that I believe played a major role in her selection. 1. Palin was a young, conservative woman of five children with...

Words: 844 - Pages: 4

Free Essay

2008 Debate

...mortgage situation. For example, after someone from the audience asked John McCain a question evolving this issue john answered something like “I pledged to require the federal government to renegotiate the mortgages of individual homeowners and make them more affordable.” I personally didn’t fully understand what this meant but at least I got to hear one side, even though I felt some questions answered by John McCain were sort of really not the answers to them, almost like beading around the bush. I also felt like both of them were bashing each other left and right, they kept on bringing issues that I never even knew about nor understood and kept on blaming each other. For example, one of the things I remember was when John McCain said Barack Obama was the Senate's second-highest recipient of donations from individuals at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two now-disgraced mortgage industry giants. Then I felt like Barack Obama stretch the truth a bit when he said that George Bush and John McCain and others had favored policies to deregulate the financial industry but none of it had worked nor did any thing they had said. They both, I felt were competing to demonstrate their qualifications as reformers on energy and foreign policies, as well as health care. I felt that Barack Obama did really well with explaining how he was going to reform health care and was going to find new means of energy. However, John McCain did a great job in demonstrating his qualifications in foreign policies...

Words: 353 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Obama Drama

...end of their fiscal period, which is October 1st they are to shut down the government. As most of us think that this is happening because of Republicans and Democrats, and how republicans are selfish, we’re somewhat wrong. If we put further thought into it, the problem is money. The nation kept borrowing money, and was so in debt that they reached a point where they were warned to stop spending money. All of this was ignored by President Obama and the nation kept borrowing money to where they then had to shut down the government two years later. "We continue to talk. No progress, but there never is until you reach a breakthrough," McCain told reporters "I'm not saying that we will ever reach a breakthrough. I'm saying conversations are going on. I hope that they reach some conclusion. I'm not sure whether they will or not." – John McCain, senator of Arizona. How the government could possibly be so terrible at managing the budget, is beyond me. But why do we keep electing them? Every time, they promise change and a better future for the nation and it only seems like it’s getting worst. These congressmen should give up their pay. Why do people at DoD have to give up theirs up? They didn’t fail at their JOB. Obama was the first to make a stand for gay marriage. The first to say he’s not pursuing recreational pot users/ He also raised the G.I. Bill, ratified nuclear treaty between Russia and the U.S. and stricter punishment on sex crimes. Reasons to why I’m stating this is...

Words: 522 - Pages: 3

Free Essay

Jkhkjhkj

...news coverage story that involves about Senator John McCain making the claim that the press was being biased and only supporting Obama during the election time. McCain, upset over the extent to which his campaign has been eclipsed, launched a video on the internet entitled Obama Love, with quotes from television anchors and journalists that he regards as evidence of bias (MacAskill, 2008). The news story that was covered for this paper is to be accurate and has sufficient depth and breadth. For the reason there is documentation from both sides towards the issue that is being discussed. It discusses about what the issue at hand is about in detail with specific facts. This news story could have covered more about why Senator John McCain felt as though President Obama was getting more attention towards the election time than the Republican Party. It seemed to just focus on what Senator John McCain’s issues were.  But since Obama won the Democratic nomination last month, his campaign team has complained repeatedly that the US media is behaving as if the election is a foregone conclusion (MacAskill, 2008). Something to consider from this article about the facts that were and were not considered involve what evidence this story had towards how news media coverage was being biased towards President Obama. Take for example a reading in this news article about how a video is proof of bias with the media involved. McCain, upset over the extent to which his campaign has...

Words: 756 - Pages: 4

Free Essay

American Government

...Chapter 14 1. During the nomination campaign, the candidates target party leaders and interest groups. This is the time for the candidates to learn that a single phrase could end the campaign or guarantee a defeat. The media take much less notice of mistakes at this time than in the general election campaign. A danger not always heeded by candidates during the nomination campaign is that a candidate can move too far left or right and appear too extreme to the electorate. If a candidate tries too hard to appeal to the interests of party elites, they jeopardize their chances of winning the election. An example of this is the election of 1964 when Barry Goldwater went too far right and lost the presidential election. 2. After earning the party’s nomination, candidates embark on the general election campaign, or the phase of a political campaign aimed at winning election to office. Unlike the nomination campaign, where candidates must run against each other, during the general election campaign, candidates in partisan elections run against nominees from other political parties. All eligible voters, regardless of political party, have the opportunity to vote. For this reason, candidates are more likely to move their positions on political issues toward the ideological center. The length of the general election campaign varies from state to state. 3. Paid staff, political consultants, and volunteers work behind the scenes to support the candidate. Collectively, they plan...

Words: 2558 - Pages: 11

Free Essay

Public Leadership

...Public Leadership “Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things” is a famous quote from Peter Drucker (Psychology Today, 2002-2013). According to Rushaw, author of Leading Public Organization: An Interactive Approach, defines leadership “as an interactive relationship involving power and influence to secure goals and achieve satisfactory reward” (p. 14). A key objective of public leadership is to influence the behaviors of the followers by the leaders to aid in achieving goals. The nature of influence determines the form of power in public leadership, that refers to the ability of a leader to influence others. There are three main sources of power at the expense of the leader to enhance organizational productivity and efficiency; they are legitimate, referent, and expert forms of power. It is as important in knowing and understanding the difference between the private and public sector organizations as it is to know and understand the privacy laws. The privacy laws varies depending on the legislation that an organization is governed under. Leadership in Public Sector According to Rusaw (2001), “the nature of public leaderships is defined by the constitutional basis of his or her work. Public service is chartered by legislation, meaning that the content, scope, and relationship of work is related not to enterprise, but to the authority of law” (p. 2). A public sector organization is an organization owned and operated by the local, state, and...

Words: 1087 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

I Am Ready for Change. Are You Ready for Change?

...Pols 115: Introduction to American Government Section: 1PM MWF Instructor: Dr. Steven Andrew Light November 24, 2008 I am ready for change. Are you ready for change? I am ready for change. Are you ready for change? The democrat Barack Obama was recently elected as the new President of the United States, with a fairly convincing victory over the republican John McCain. The American people where obviously ready for change, but would there have been any major difference if the outcome of the election was turned in McCain’s favor? There would naturally have been some differences between an Obama presidency and a McCain presidency, but both naturally want what’s best for their country. So if the differences between an Obama presidency and a McCain presidency would result in an outcome that the U.S. population in general would be better off or benefit from, are not very likely. Obama spoke about change, he got elected, so now it will be interesting to see if he practice what he preach. People have always been promised a lot from politicians, and people often end up being disappointed because a politician doesn’t deliver what is promised. Maybe the most important change Barack Obama can make is changing this impression, and he should do that by making the financial crisis, the increasing unemployment, and the extraction of U.S. soldiers from Iraq, the first three priorities he will deal with as the President of the United States. Barack Obama isn’t going to be a Messiah for the...

Words: 1257 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Abortion Cartoon

...Myles Young Prof. Rosenbaum English 1310.283 12 April 2014 Abortion Cartoon In the 2008 presidential election of Barack Obama versus John McCain, Democratic candidate Obama supported partial-birth abortions while Republican candidate McCain was very much against them. This controversial subject has inspired various political cartoons, articles, and debates between people with opposing views. In 2008, David Donar created a political cartoon that features two people making comments on abortion that accurately describe Obama and McCain’s political views. In the 2008 election, Obama and McCain supported the general views of their political parties; these contrasting opinions are represented in Donar’s political cartoon on the topic of abortion. In the cartoon, a man has a McCain t-shirt on while a woman has an Obama t-shirt on; the man states, “I’m pro life” while the woman states “I’m pro quality of life.” McCain opposed any abortion that did not result from a serious issue such as rape, incest, or pregnancy problems for the mother or child. He was against funding for education to youths on pregnancy and contraceptives, which are aimed at reducing the amount of abortions within the teenage population. Obama supported the right to an abortion, giving women the opportunity to abort their pregnancy based on their individual circumstances. His decision would allow for women to have an abortion for any reason, especially if they could not support their baby properly...

Words: 467 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Immigration Not a Partisan Issues

...increasing government spending on security measures and enforcement at U.S. borders Republicans and Independents both favored an employer hire requirement the most, while citizenship opportunities for undocumented immigrants stood most popular amongst Democrats. The least favorite of the five? Increasing border security and enforcement, mainly because it entails more government spending. These five measures would be somewhat incompatible if they were all implemented at once as they all differ in perspective. Above all, the most important result of this poll is it shows the majority of Americans have significant momentum for immigration reform. Calling themselves the “Band of Eight”, a group of eight U.S. Senators – including John McCain (R-Ariz.), Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), and Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), – have taken things into their own hands by creating a bipartisan coalition geared towards coming up with an internal plan to combat the liberal reform plan President Obama proposed last week. The widely experienced group of senators includes a variety of different...

Words: 477 - Pages: 2

Free Essay

The Rise of the Politician-Comedian

...The Rise of the Comedian-Politician 1,361 words The greatest religious and societal luminaries seem to repeat each other’s message time and again throughout history. Be kind to each other. Try to empathize with your enemy; see how you are like them, rather than how you are different. And why do we need these people to constantly repeat what their predecessors have already said? It is because the world constantly changes, and we must be aware of the context with which to apply ancient wisdom. Recently, there has been a new breed of professional that carries on this struggle for contextualized thinking: The comedian-politician. In the confusing and vitriolic era of today’s politics, comedian-politicians such as John Oliver and Jon Stewart are essential because they are the foremost providers of political context and moderation. Since the 1980s, American political debate has seen an unprecedented reduction in context. Lee Atwater, a Republican political operative, openly recognized that stripping the context from an issue and playing to baser emotions such as fear, prejudice, and anger was an amazingly effective way to mobilize a base of voters. Rather than appeal to both sides through examination-backed rationality, he instead opted to inflame his core constituency to the point where they came out to vote in droves. Atwater’s legacy lives on in Karl Rove, a fellow accomplice dating back to their college days. Atwater’s tactics were simple yet effective. Lee...

Words: 1384 - Pages: 6

Free Essay

Assess the Importance of the National Party Convention

...Both major parties and some minor parties, hold them, and they usually last for 4 days in the summer of the election year, and are held in a large city, with the venue being decided by each party's National Committee. The National Party Convention is attended by the delegates (most of whom will have been chosen in the presidential primaries), and much of the national media. This function has also been lost. Not since 1956 has a National Convention actually chosen the vice-presidential candidate; nowadays, the running-mate is chosen by the presidential candidate. Indeed, in recent years, the announcement of the running-mate has been made before, rather than at, the National Convention. In 2008, both Barack Obama (Democrat) and John McCain (Republican) announced their running-mates - Joe Biden (Democrat) and Sarah Palin (Republican) respectively - just before their Conventions convened. It is therefore more accurate to state that the National Convention merely confirms rather than chooses the vice-presidential candidate. National Party Conventions are important because they promote party unity. The Convention is the only time in 4 years that the party actually meets together; at other times, the party exists merely as 50 state parties therefor any wounds created in the primaries can be healed. It also gives the defeated candidates an opportunity to support the chosen candidate publicly. The media will comment on whether or not the party is united. Disunited Conventions...

Words: 400 - Pages: 2

Free Essay

Oedipus

...Day Two Journal Assignment Examples of Oedipus and Jocasta dismissing the prophecy: Jocasta: “Now, you remember the story: Laios was killed by marauding strangers where three highways meet; But his child had not been three days in this world before the King had pierced the baby’s ankles and left him to die on a lonely mountainside. Thus, Apollo never caused that child to kill his father, and it was not Laios’s fate to die at the hands of his son, as he had feared. This is what prophets and prophecies are worth! Have no dread of them.” “No. From now on, where oracles are concerned I would not waste a second thought on any.” Oedipus: “Why, “marauders”, you said, Killed the King, according to this man’s story. If he maintains that still, if there were several, Clearly the guilt is not mine: I was alone.” “He has brought this decrepit fortune-teller, this collector of dirty pennies, this prophet fraud---“ What do you think of the word “fate”? How about “free will”? How are these related, or are they? “Fate” is an individual’s unchangeable path to a certain predicted outcome. It is a word that describes the results that an individual will inevitably face due to the decisions they chose prior. “Free will” describes a person’s ability to act in a manner in however way they choose to do so in a way they see fit. It portrays actions uncontrolled and unmanipulated by no one else except for one person. I feel that-in a way- these two words are somewhat related to one another due to...

Words: 526 - Pages: 3

Free Essay

Management

...represent data that isn’t related to geography. WHAT’S SO BAD ABOUT IT? A region’s size can create a volume of color that misrepresents the results from that region. WHO WOULD DO IT? Every four years, political reporters color election maps like this. Managers present global financial results by coloring in whole countries to represent a few cities’ performance. WHAT’S THE RIGHT WAY? Overlay maps with bubbles of representative sizes to create a more accurate depiction of nonspatial data. op yo OBAMA VS. McCAIN, 2008, BY COUNTY rP os t VISION STATEMENT HOW TO LIE WITH CHARTS ORIGINAL APPROACH Do No tC Call it the Montana Problem—that state covers 4% of the area of the U.S. but is home to only 0.3% of the population. Or you could call it the New York City Problem—0.01% of the area but 2.7% of the population. About 80% of this map is red, but Republican presidential candidate John McCain received only 40% of the vote. REVISED APPROACH When bubbles sized proportionally to population are overlaid on the map, blue becomes more dominant. Large, sparsely populated counties are no longer entirely colored in red but instead are speckled with small dots. This document is authorized for educator review use only by SAMPRIT CHAKRABARTI, at IBS Business School until November 2015. Copying or posting is an infringement of copyright. Permissions@hbsp.harvard.edu or 617.783.7860 2 THE...

Words: 777 - Pages: 4

Free Essay

Successful Leader

...“Successful Leader” The media item that I choose was a commercial form the Bush vs. Gore campaign in 2000. The commercial was representing George W. Bush. This particular commercial was titled “Successful Leader,” Bush for President, Inc., 2000. This political commercial was created from the Museum of the Moving Image, The Living Room Candidate: Presidential Campaign Commercials 1952- 2012. The commercial was created in 2000. It was created on behalf of George W. Bush. The purpose of this commercial was to reinforce his image as a "compassionate conservative" with his focus on domestic issues and frequent images of seniors and children. In the commercial the bias was more towards the Republican views. The tactics that are used in the commercial to persuade the people’s views are by listing the positive changes that he has accomplished through his years as a governor. They listed the most important things such as cutting taxes, educational improvement, and juvenile crime rates. The symbolism that I see in that commercial is a leader, a great leader. I see someone who can give us a better change in America, someone whom can enhance each and every state, it instead of destroying them. A person who cares and wants everyone to have the best of what they can. The media can greatly effect elections by generating attention, whether it is through negative campaigning or through their choice in coverage of a candidate. "In competing for the attention of the large strip of the voting...

Words: 396 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Decisions in Para

... Diversity in the Media Cultural diversity has always been a political issue in America. The most recent and memorizing depiction of diversity in the media would be our choices between a traditional, Christian, American male, John McCain versus a non–traditional, religion in question, person of color, Barack Obama. Americans have always viewed people for face value and are very judgmental. The diversity between these two candidates has become a dividing point between American voters. The media eye is constantly in view of the candidates. This causes stereotyping and wrongful opinions to be formed. The importance of research and investigation for the truth is vital. American Diversity Representation The people are judging the candidates not only by face value, but also by what the media portrays them as. McCain is portrayed as conservative and old fashioned. This in turn has hurt his popularity because of the similarities between him and President Bush, which the American public has seemed to disapprove of. On the other hand Obama is portrayed as non-conservative and current with contemporary ways of thinking and ideas. They both have positive attributes but the media does not forget their flaws. McCain is looked down upon for being republican and would follow in the footsteps of President Bush. Obama has religious issues and would be the first person of color to be elected president. All this stereotyping takes a toll on American voters. ...

Words: 523 - Pages: 3