Postmodern John McCain: the presidential candidate some Arizonans know — and loathe

Amy... your article about John McCain confirmed my "gut-feeling" that he represents another example of "an empty shell of a man" who does not deserve to be the President of the United States. I had the same feeling about GW Bush when he was campaigning. I have had enough of having a person, like John McCain, who appears to be unlightened, self-serving, conniving, dishonest, and living as a concocted persona of leadership, representing me and the Country I love. I (we) deserve the best in leadership. And in response to your last sentence - May the Gods forbid!

A glowing testimonial for BARACK OBAMA!!! McCain would just be more of the same tired shit we've been getting for the past 8 years.

Whatever happened to real journalism? Where you remove all the personal emotions and stick to the facts? Where are the footnotes that support your "facts"? Everything you say may be true, but your creditiblity is lost because you choose to give your "spin" instead of sticking to real facts. I hope that one day this country returns to real journalism instead of blogs like this.

Amy I commend your courage for portraying McCain in ways that others are unfortunately loathe to go. Your expose' should be read by every voter who intends to vote for McCain. It is well-sourced and honest. The anecdotes are gems.The more I learn about McCain the less I like him. I've been reading about the man for only 2 - 3 years. There is no doubt about it, he does get glowing press on the most part. The fact that the press protects him is deeply troubling.We are electing the President not our BFF. The media was in the tank for Bush and now McCain. After just shy of 8 years with Bush considering the damage done, the state of our nation, the economy and the loss of credibility around the world, etc... it is shocking, but not surprising, that the press would keep voters in the dark again.Notwithstanding there are some that recognize the media's preference, but that many more times two do not. They've been convinced that Obama gets preference, but fail to note quantity does not translate into quality.McCain has a problem with the truth. Not only is McCain inconsistent, he lacks an understanding of how people live and struggle in their day-to-day lives. On every issue important to voters from Social Security, Medicare, the environment, foreign policy, energy, education and civil rights to the economy he is out of touch. Yet McCain has no compunction making statements that "sound" like he is in the people's camp, but he isn't -- his voting record history proves it.Nor has he demonstrated the qualities and skills required of a leader. Notably to think there is a chance his finger would be on the trigger with his infamous temper sends shivers up and down my spine. I have neither confidence nor trust in McCain's judgment.Despite the media's favouritism, needless to say, Iam relieved McCain trails Obama. He'd probably be losing by a lot more if the media would peel off the layers of the onion. Nonetheless McCain is a force to be reckoned with.Although Obama will probably win we cannot and must not take that for granted. So volunteer and vote to make sure Obama wins.

We've diaried this article at the Daily Kos:

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/8/8/91630/57190/880/564566

Come over and say hi, if you like. This is an excellent and very thorough piece of work, and deserves greater exposure. Amy and the NT staff, thank you.

What a terrific piece of writing and journalism. You're bucking the well-crafted maverick myth and that cannot make you a popular person with the GOP. This is a must read for anyone who thinks all presidential candidates are alike.

For those who choose to support McCain, they owe it to themselves to separate out the myth and understand who they're actually supporting and not buy into the straight talking fairy tale. This article is a great start to that process.

Without question, the best read of the day. Thank you!

Ms. Silverman, this is an amazing article- the most striking (2 me) is the soft glove slap on the wrist Cindy got from illegally taking perscription drugs. If that were you or I or the Lady down the street we WOULD have faced jail time.

I'm always disgusted when I see the scales of Justice tip unevenly for the rich and connected versus the poor and alienated. I get even more disgusted when it starts being as the accepted practice by the media.

Thank you so much for this article and taking the time to getting out there.

what a great story. i hope it gets picked up by Vanity Fair. the public needs more stories like this one, which touches on the truth about mccain. he's not a good guy, and he would make a terrible president.

I was expecting more after I saw this article linked from the Daily KOS. Lack of sourcing and clearly written by someone with a long-term vendetta against McCain, also ventured into too long; didn't read territory a couple of times. The funny thing is that the McCain campaign considers the writer insignificant enough that they didn't bother to contact her back, when during the article she talks about how abusive they are in response to criticism. Also, attacks on his wife for a long-ago drug problem? Come on.

I'm all for criticizing either of the candidates, but this mess of intimation, suggestion, and personal attack doesn't do anything for us.

Polygamy thrives in Colorado City, Arizona where American families ares systematically stripped of their democratic rights, and John McCain hasn't
lifted a finger to stop it. What qualifies McCain to be president when he can't even clean up the Taliban in his own backyard? Check out the recent documentary, "Banking on Heaven".
http://www.bankingonheaven.com

@Todd from Houston above - Bias and "spin" do not preclude "real reporting." Trouble arises when emotions and opinions are couched as fact instead of stated outright. The title of this article alone indicates that it deals with the reporters personal feelings and relationship.

Fabulous! Of course, I am now truly scared for our country. We don't need another lying, easily-angered emotional wreck in the White House.

Has anyone ever looked into whether Sen. McCain has PTSD? The anger issue and gleeful cruelty have made me wonder about that in the past few months.

as a long time resident i was aware of a lot of the items in your absolutely wonderful article. rose mofford is a beautiful lady. i had no idea what mccain had done to her. every voter needs to be introduced to the real mccain. including all the other questionable dealings, i.e. don diamond & such. wish we could find other people to have as senators. both mccain & kyl suck.

Yeah, what is so great about a man who turns his back on thousands of women and children suffering at the hands of corrupt polygamous leaders in Colorado City, Arizona? For 20+ years McCain turned a blind eye to the Taliban in his own backyard, and I don't trust him one bit.

I had a chat with one of McCain's caterers who alleges that McCain is a full-blown alcoholic, and Cindy is a serious pill popper. I mean seriously, folks, McCain walks like he's walking on eggs...a strong sign that he's a drunk.

WAKE UP AMERICA!

Awesome piece. Kudos for a great story and important insight about McCain. Awesome.

Great article. And a great example of the power and importance of institutional knowledge in journalism. Thanks.

Great article! This definitely needs to be circulated around the traditional media. You're exactly right when you said that the traditional media and many, many reporters out there always give McCain "the benefit of the doubt."

Thank you for actually being a journalist.

Thanks for this Amy- I hope it gets picked up by the national media. McCain stories abound in Pho-town- he is, indeed, not who he appears to be. With all due respect- spending time in the Hanoi Hilton doesn't mean that one should get a pass on the character issue. The word on the street is that his home was known among high school kids as party central- lots of underage drinking going on as Cindy retreated upstairs. It is a sad situation. Our country deserves better. We need a healer.

Ms Silverman,

I just finished your piece on John McCain. Great work. You are what is lacking in the "Media coverage" of McCain.

Reading your article made my day.

Txs
rl

Thanks for writing the truth about John and Cindy McCain. It seems to me that the Media have fundamentally forgotten how to do their jobs. It should never be about how much they like someone personally--it is their job to tell the truth about the history of that particular politician. Why can't they do that anymore?? Have they always been that way or do we have an idealized version of the way it used to be? Maybe we do because of a few exceptional journalists--like Murrow and others? It has been so sad to watch the decline in simple truth telling. If it is just about liking the politician, are you telling me there is not one single solitary democrat in the whole country they can stand, because it seems to me the press continues to do this same thing and only with Republican candidates. Could it be more likely that it is coming from above--that they aren't allowed to write negative stories? If that's the case we have a much larger problem which may never be fixed.

I, for one, greatly appreciate this article. The Obama campaign needs to read this. Thank you Amy!

TOO FUNNY! The auto-ad generator just put a Donate McCain ad at the end of the comments page!

LOL, surely there is no one out there with an ounce of common sense actually considering McSame is there?

JT
www.Ultimate-Anonymity.com

Any woman who votes for John McCain is a fool.

McCain must have known of Cindy's drug problems; when someone around you is taking 20-30 Percocets a day, you notice.

And he did nothing.

Nothing, to help his own wife.

Until... oh, dear... suddenly Cindy's back-monkey looked like it might be a personal embarassment for him. THEN it's time for string-pulling, rehab, and spin-doctoring. Only then.

And that's not even mentioning: 1) His outburst several years ago, calling his wife a "cunt" and "a trollop" in front of others.

And 2) just last week, offering up Cindy's participation in a notorious Sturgis Rally contest that frequently descends to toplessness, nudity, banana-fellating, and orgasm-faking.

What a sweet guy.

Here's a question for any woman who's considering voting for McCain in November: Would you want your daughter to marry a man like that?

No? Then why would you want your daughter to have a President like that?

I absolutely chuckled when I saw the cover...BTW...didn't any one notice (in the media) John McCain, encouraging his wife, Cindy, to enter the "Miss Buffalo Chip" contest at Sturgis?!!! It was even the poll question the next day at Fox News 10 (locally).!!????? Did he not realize that it was a wet T-shirt contest that went nude????!!!! Any Biker knows that! OR was he just pandoring votes? Either he didn't know & was just telling the peope what they wanted to hear..."MY FRIENDS"...or He REALLY wanted her to bare her breasts for votes? I don't know, but...I've never heard of a Presidential Candidate farming his wife out to a bunch of bikers for a few votes!

Not so elloquent, but still...
Doodlebug

To Chris in San Diego:
Amy Silverman has followed McCain for many years, and although San Diego is not that far away, you certainly do not have the history with this guy that we in AZ do. I suppose many of us in Arizona become so accustomed to our own particular ambitious, self-serving, manipulating devil, that by sheer continual presence, he stops seeming so bad, but when I read (on my Kindle-When will PNT push content to my e-book reader?) "McCain: The Myth of a Maverick" by Matt Welch, I was struck by many of the same items Amy brought up in this article. (As a matter of fact, she was quoted in the book.) As the litany of McCain's past sins is trotted out, I look at the list and think “I remember that.” and “Oh, Yeah, that WAS happening, then.” and realize that in all this time, I had never really put it all together in my own mind. So as a result, here with McCain, familiarity breeds not contempt, but rather a sick, sort of co-dependent acceptance, and we miss the whole picture of who the man really is. We must not buy his positioning, for that is what it is-positioning. When something is wrong, no matter how familiar it is, it is still wrong. The man is scary. If McCain gets elected, this nation will have made a bargain worthy of Faust.

This explains his hostility towards the media. He's never liked them from day one. In fact, it shows he's very thin-skinned.

The comparison to Eddie Haskell by Neuman is right on the money. You can see it in the way he campaigns. He tries to curry favor by talking to voters at on issues which he has no clue about at a level he thinks they will respect regardless if there is any merit.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, Amy. You have, in less than 3 pages, eviscerated John McCain's false legend. I sincerely hope that this article goes out beyond the congniscenti of Arizona. I will do my part.

Amy: Regarding Rosemary, I think McCain was referring to the play on words for "Visualize Whirled Peas" when he said she must have a bumper sticker that says "Visualize World Peace" (which is more of a joke than mocking an elderly lady concerned with nuclear profileration)

It looks like (after reviewing much about McCain) that he is a train wreck waiting to happen...and this is the guy that the Repubthugs want to nominate for president of the USA...He definitely is not worthy to be the commander-in-chief...he seems to be a master flip-flopper on serious issues and his famous temper and fits of rage do not seem to fit in as a prospective candidate for the presidency....and he seems to not stay on task/topic...maybe the initial symptoms of dementia...and he calls himself a straight-talker....preposterous!!

What a venomous, hate-filled piece! Clearly, the writings of a disgruntled person, whose tush wasn't kissed properly by McCain...

Yikes! McCain got political with a Democrat! Ouch! Certainly, no Democrats play politics, right?

When is the writer going to pen a knockdown piece on Obama? Certainly, he's got vulnerabilities as well...

Couldn't mention any of McCain's positives, which illustrates that it was simply a "bash-McCain" piece...

What a pathetic writer! Get a life! Go kiss up to the inexperienced B.S. artist known as Obama!

Please note that Mecham didn't say or use the word "pickaninny", he instead defended an author who had used it in a book he had read and said he didn't see anything wrong with his using it inthe context. Not exactly forgivable either, but facts are facts.

I'm so glad to see someone finally talk about the Keating Five other than the New York Times, but where's the old file photos of McCain cavorting in those silly straw hats on Keating's island? I always thought they were just as devastating as Gary Hart sitting with that gal on his lap on the good ship "Monkey Business".

It's disturbing how downright cruel and hateful some Democrats get with their now-all-too-familiar smearing of opponents. Then, after they smear they turn around and accuse the Republicans of the offense.

Smearing reached its zenith with Jim Carville and the Clintons and now is the modus operandi for too many in the party. I am embarrassed to be a Democrat when I read garbage like Silverman's article. I'm also not beholden to the party and will vote for whose best for the country, not for my party.

For the good of this country, quit the crass and divisive politicking and stick to the issues. Not doing so is a sign of a lack of intelligence.

Unite our country!

Wow! I was riveted reading this article- after all the years you have invested in following, interviewing and investigating McCain, you deserve a huge THANK YOU for writing this article! I knew little bits of some of this information, some I knew nothing about, but I now see what I feared about this candidate is valid. Too bad some continue to believe the public persona McCain has created, and choose to ignore the facts because they are ugly.
Job well done Amy!!

Great article. Thanks for covering the McCain that the national press is afraid to touch.

I just took a peek at http://www.tftptf.com/ and the picketing of McCain at Camp Lejuene August 1st..

I grew up in Scottsdale, Arizona and
thought you ought to know more about
McCain and TCE. I know from personal
experience that John McCain doesn't
give a hoot about the poisoning his constituents:

http://yosemite.epa.gov/r9/sfund/r9sfdocw.nsf/webdisplay/oid-3a4364e2a3ab3c7688256de9006819f2?OpenDocument

McCain has never attempted to intervene on behalf
of his contaminated constituents. He ought to be exposed for
ignoring all those children in the NIBW
during his years in office. He chose to
keep the contamination of the
groundwater in Scottsdale very, very
hush-hush. Keating and others would not
have appreciated that kind of publicity.
McCain conspired with other officials to suppress the facts about the water Scottsdale residents drank. Fifty-seven
THOUSAND POUNDS of highly toxic TCE have been removed from the municipal wells that supplied my neighborhood in the 60's & 70's.

http://www.epa.gov/region09/waste/sfund/indianbend/index.html

When I called his office about the ATSDR petition, he never returned my call.

http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/story/87349

John McCain even failed to act
when TCE was served to residents this year.

http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/story/116853

He also may well have been the Senator who called to pressure Mr. Dillinberg, as Terry Greene Sterling reported here:

http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/1996-12-05/news/scottsdale-s-drinking-problem/

John McCain ought to be ashamed of his
disregard for his contaminated citizens and the Marines from Camp Lejuene. When contacted about the petition ATSDR accepted, McCain had no reply. Because of McCain’s help with the cover up, too many kids who grew up in the NIBW are not aware of their chronic TCE exposure and it's consequences. Many of the
kids who grew up there left the State to die, so evidently he doesn't feel need to advocate on their behalf. Now he wants to be PRESIDENT?!

Wow - excellent article! I really didn't expect to actually read the whole thing, but the farther in I got - the more you see what a trainwreck this man is!

For those crying about the evil smear tactics of Democrats, all I can say is WTF?? Please crawl out of whatever cave you currently reside and you can't miss the endless right-wing spin. For every one Obama ad that runs in a half hour - there seems to be no end to the McSame ads bashing BO.

How about this - bless the man for his service to our country. No one can take that away...but no way in hell does that qualify him to be President - this was just icing on the cake.

Amy~
I get it, you don't like McCain, and judging from your article, you never did. It's cool. I don't like Obama, as a matter of fact I loath him.
Now, about the article, I do think that you did do research, however, whatever you did write you did whatever you could to make McCain look bad. "Cindy looked miserable next to John". So now you know what someone is thinking? Must be a GREAT trait for a "journalist".
I'm sure you are a good person; however I could make you look just as bad as you made John McCain look in this article.
As Amy was writing this article, she sat alone in her one bedroom apartment saddened that she had no one in her life; she would eat her frozen TV dinner alone once again. As she sat there wondering why no one invited her out on a Friday night, when all of her colleges went out for drinks, she decided to write about the Presidential hopeful, John McCain. But as Amy wrote, her bitterness shone through her writing and made her look even more desperate for approval, even if it was only from the ObamaBots.
See I too can do the same thing you did! My point has been made.

OCB (ol' Cranky Bastard) should concentrate on his MAC lessons, History and Geography. His GAFFES are as big as lies that he tells. He is obviously suffering from CRS (Can't Remember Sh**) aka Alzheimer?s He should go lay down somewhere.

OCB flubed the name of Georgian President three times. OCB's people say he and the Georgian leader rode jet skis together” OCB even nominated Saakashvili for a Nobel Peace Prize in 2005. But in a speech yesterday, McCain mispronounced his name three times!!!!!!

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x6f5ng_mccain-flubs-name-of-georgian-presi_news

Duh! And this is who the GOP puts up against a Havard Grad? Good Luck with that GOP.!!! LOL!!P.S. Mccain would bring a Knife to a gun fight, a Pen to a test!

Read "The Obama Nation" by Jerome R. Corsi and think twice about who you will be voting for. The other big candidate is ten times more shallow, lies continually (even when facts and history are a given), and has no experience in foreign policy at all.

When B. Hussein Obama tears apart our military and opens our borders wide, how are you going to protect your children and your community? You think the government is big now? Wait until the Marxist B. Hussein Obama gets into office. Do you own your own company? If B. Hussein Obama has his way, you will pay dearly in taxes (as if you don't pay enough, now).

Don't let this over-emotional, bleeding-heart tripe rule your head. THINK for yourself. Oh, my, it certainly is hard-hitting when someone writes about their **feelings** toward someone. Give me a break.

Take this paper and its website, like any other media source, with a shaker of salt (not just a grain). This paper is not about thinking, it's about trumping up stories to create victims and sensationalism in order to push its own ridiculous left-wing agendas and to sell ad space. It's FREE, after all. You get what you pay for. It's easier to have no principles or to change your mind to fit the current situation than it is to stick to time-tested principles and values. This company has none.

John McCain was elected to represent Scottsdale in the House of Representatives in 1982. Why did he fail to speak up for his contaminated citizens in the NIBW? The only time he wrote EPA was to complain on behalf of his constituent, Mr. Johnson, who was implicated as a Potentially Responsible Party?! The EPA responded to McCain's letter by stating that their mission was to "protect the health of all of Scottdale's citizens and their need for drinking water."
Why didn't McCain contact the EPA to ask what kind of health risks were posed by the TCE contamination his constituents were subjected to for decades? One might speculate it was because NO ONE PAID HIM TO SPEAK FOR US, THE PEOPLE WHO LIVED IN THE NIBW PRIOR TO 1981. SHAME ON YOU, JOHN MCCAIN - YOU HELPED HIDE THE TRUTH ABOUT OUR TOXIC TCE EXPOSURE STARTING IN 1982. Why did you betray the citizens of Scottsdale, Mr. McCain? Why do you remain silent even today, when TCE is served in the tap water to your citizens? Your silence says it all. SHAME ON YOU, MCCAIN, YOU PUT LOBBIESTS BEFORE CITIZENS. SHAME ON YOU!!!

@Rube:

Well, I won't be reading Corsi's book any time soon, since it has been proven to be riddled with falsehoods making it unworthy of the paper on which it is printed.

Re: foreign policy experience comparison. At least Obama clearly knows who all the players are on the world stage, can keep them straight in his mind and convictions, and properly pronounce their names. McCain's constant stumbling, bumbling, misstatements, and confusion do not instill and confidence in me in his knowledge/mastery of foreign affairs.

Re: military and borders. Your comment is baseless fear-mongering. Seriously. Do you have any tangible examples about how your doomsday scenarios would be made manifest by an Obama administration?

Re: small business taxes. If corporations (large businesses) paid their share of taxes or say, ANY taxes at all (per a recent GAO report, a majority of American corporations don't pay any taxes, and haven't for years), perhaps small business owners wouldn't be squeezed unfairly to make up the difference. I have no confidence that a long-standing corporate toadie like McCain would even attempt to redress that imbalance.

Emotion, bleeding-heart or otherwise, has nothing to do with this election for me. I want someone with the kind of laser-edged, dispassionate intelligence capable of working through the problems caused by the disastrous Bush administration. That person is Barack Obama.

What I thought was truly hard-hitting about Silverman's piece is the revelation of the consistency of McCain's repellent character. Bottom line: I don't want someone who is ethically bankrupt and emotionally unstable serving in the most powerful public office in the world, and will vote accordingly.

Honestly, I'm surprised you bothered to take the time to read the article. Surely there is a more important piece of journalism right now over at Fox News that you should be ingesting unquestionably?

Your comments are true to your name, Rube. Good luck to you.

Thank you Amy. Your detractors, screaming that you have always hated McCain should read your article from 1999. I have and almost didn't read this one. (I take issue with your depiction of the POW/MIA families in that article.)

I also take issue with your swallowing of John McCain's 'version' of his life as a POW. Read, "John McCain, Prisoner of War, a First Person account" in USNews & World report. With his own pen he shows what a liar he is in this 17 page fantasy.

On the 2nd page he admits he 'caved' after FOUR DAYS.
No torture, just a swollen knee, injured on bailout.
Later in the 17 page article he 'forgets' he already gave them the info and tries to make us think he 'held out' for months, and up to two years.
He said he wasn't treated as badly as the other POWs, several times.
EVERY single Rank increase he received was due to his daddy, and he is PROUD of it??????
He NEVER made Commander, contrary to assertions in the article.
His 'story' during the Warren Forum about having his biceps, etc., tied, was a lie. In the article for USNews and world Reports he mentions several other POWs who were tied in such a manner but states everytime he broke the same rules, he was just forced to sit on a stool for 3 hours. (daddy you know)

You could say I hate the guy. You would probably be right. both his commanding Officers from the camp say he was never tortured, but I am more impressed by his INSISTENCE that we normalize relations with Vietnam.

Wow! Is this the same guy who insists we not use diplomacy anywhere else in the world. What makes Vietnam so special that he would hug his captor while looking fondly at him, on the Senate floor? Minutes after he had made a screaming, vulgarity filled diatribe at the female Representative of the POW/MIAs???

Someone should write a book on how many times he has made a liar of himself.

Or has been found to have lied. Like when he said there was no foreign interrogation of POWs. Find anything he has done for the Service men and women. They are only fodder for his endless ambitions to go to war.

Thank you Amy for your piece. After the Saddleback forum and the answers that McCain made, I started to question his sincerity and irritating bravado."Defeat Evil?!!!" Does he even recognize that only God can defeat evil? Your comment about Cindy's drug situation is a big window into how McCain treats his women.(I just read the piece on his former wife.) If he can lose his temper and use other people for his ego, I wonder what's going on in the privacy of his own home. I see Cindy dutifully standing by his side, rigid, devoid of any enthusiam. What's going on?
I feel sorry for Cindy for being "used" by an egocentric future president of the United States. God help us!

Thanks Amy for being a real reporter and re-minding us all of who and what Mcinsane is....

In all honesty today, it is not about attacking blue versus red anymore. It is about watching the slow death of our country right before our eyes, for those of us who care to look outside the box enough to see it. Both candidates being literally shoved down our throats by mainstream media is no choice at all. With Mcinsane, we have "100 years in Iraq and now Iran." and Corporate Fascism. With Obamba, we have Bresenzki, "Grand Chessboard Kill Russia, New Cold War", Socialism so what kind of choice is that? the PTB wish to brainwash and shove at us? Both so called choices are affiliated with the banking elite and the One World Order folks who will do what their masters say.
It's time we all educated ourselves away from the Lame-stream news media who do nothing except spew and shill for the corporate interests and banking Federal Reserve cartel. Why can't we all be good Americans for a change and sart holding our so called representatives feet to fire, or their out!! After all "we the people" have the power, not them.
Thanks for telling it like it is Amy, it is refreshing, and I for one will look to your articles in the New Times again to see what is next in truth telling.

Arizonians know him better than the rest of the nation and the picture is not pretty - he has a history of lying, deceiving, flip-flopping - meanness - doing anything or whatever it takes to win the presidency. He, himself, said he's not in it for any "noble purpose or reform or good of the country" (paraphrased) but simply because: "I have the ambition to be president." Seriously, do we really really need exact replicants of Dubya and Laura in the White House?
Remember: leopards do not change their spots! Bush once a drunk - always a drunk - that pretzel incident? Yeah, right, it was the pretzel not the booze.

I, for one, DO NOT WANT a president that I want to have f'ing beers with! They are usually willfully ignorant elitists (the real elitists) that have brought this once proud nation to it's knees. I also believe he does a tremendous dis-service to the thousands of other POWs by endlessly using his experience as one as a bloody excuse for every damn mistake, lie, slip-up, or perceived slight against him. Jeezus!

Nor do I want another son with 'daddy' issues - I've had enough Greek tragedy over the past 8 years thank you very much. I want psychological testing for all presidential contenders and veeps. Seriously. Both parties. The world cannot afford another lunatic in charge. We simply can not.

Truth About McCainMcCain Lies About His Support For MLK Jr. Day in Arizona
http://www.crooksandliars.com/2008/08/02/mccain-lies-about-his-support-for-mlk-jr-day-in-arizona/McCain Lies About Grabbing Pork
http://www.truthnews.us/?p=1559MSM Can No Longer Ignore McCain's Lies
http://cousinavi.wordpress.com/2008/08/03/msm-can-no-longer-ignore-mccains-lies/McCain Lies His Head Off; NY Times Asleep at Switch
http://blogs.tnr.com/tnr/blogs/the_plank/archive/2008/01/18/mccain-lies-his-head-off-new-york-times-asleep-at-swich.aspxMcCain Lies About Obama's Position on Taxes
http://delawarewatch.blogspot.com/2008/08/mccain-lies-about-obama-position-on.htmlMcCain Lies To Fox News About Town Hall Audience
http://www.newscorpse.com/ncWP/?p=945

McCain Lies About Social Security Privatization
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bill-scher/mccain-lies-about-social_b_106862.htmlMcCain Lies to Vet About Voting Record
http://news.aol.com/political-machine/2008/07/10/mccain-lies-to-vet-about-voting-record/McCain Lies About Supporting Katrina Investigation
http://www.jackandjillpolitics.com/2008/06/mccain-lies-about-supporting-katrina-investigation/McCain lies about POW experience while pandering for votes in Pennsylvania
http://www.minnesotaindependent.com/4462/mccain-lies-about-pow-experience-while-pandering-for-votes-in-pennsylvaniaMcCain Lied or Was Confused: You Make the Call
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/a-siegel/mccain-lied-or-was-confus_b_119385.htmlPOW mate calls McCain 'liar' over 'turncoat' charge
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/miller-mccain-war-2121488-pow-saysAnn Coulter Calls John McCain a Liar, and Then Lies About Him (and MoveOn.org)
http://www.newshounds.us/2008/02/01/ann_coulter_calls_john_mccain_a_liar_and_then_lies_about_him_and_moveonorg.phpJohn McCain Is Lying About the Cross in the Dirt, and He Needs To Be Called Out
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ben-cohen/john-mccain-is-lying-abou_b_119757.htmlJohn McCain Lies About Alternative Energy and Lots of Other Stuff
http://climaticidechronicles.org/2008/08/21/john-mccain-lies-about-alternative-energy-and-lots-of-other-stuff/John McCain is a Liar
http://johnmccainisaliar.com/2008/08/DAMMIT..Tell Me The Truth! UPDATED!
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/7/3/0717/55880/710/545421

Jukebox John keeps changing his tune
http://www.thecarpetbaggerreport.com/flipflops

Great article, Madame Silverman. I've lived in this state for nearly 25 years and didn't even know half of this stuff.

The thing is compared to other Washington Republicans he appears almost saintly, but compared to the best AZ politicians he's nowhere close. All the more reason to vote for the Big O.

What we have here is nothing better than white trash trailer park thugs who are petty thieves as well as traitors being considered for the top job in this once great nation. I might also add that John Mccain is a cold blooded killer.

How did we come to accept the son of a traitor who has learned the craft so well? As the anti-intellectual John Mccain is: it is hard to imagine that someone who was not scholastically qualified to enter the war college, someone who was at the bottom of his class at the academy be even smart enough to learn the art of treason is a bit boggling.

How can this once great nation set such low standards for those being considered for sensitive jobs?

How could such pathetic criminals even be considered for anything more than janitorial positions in places where everything of value is nailed down? The slut stole drugs from a charity and he ripped off the Arizona GOP for a measly $35,000.

In the typical neanderthal mindset of a war criminal and intellectually challenged neo-con called "John Mccain"; his choice of a person who has demonstrated the capacity and arrogance to abuse the power that comes with public trust is NO SURPRISE! Sarah Palin is of the same petty, vindictive, sociopathic mindset demonstrated by Dick Cheney and his ilk.

His choice for a political "attack dog" was well vetted. His choice was based on the same criteria GW Bush used to choose the ruthless, self-serving Darth Cheney as his running mate. Both have a vested interest in placing the demands of big oil, AIPAC, and other special interest groups of questionable integrity above all else, including; the needs, concerns, and safety of honest hard working American citizens.

John Mccain wants to stay in Iraq for 100 years. John Mccain wants to "bomb, bomb, bomb - bomb, bomb Iran". John Mccain is itching for a fight with Russia over their REACTION to the US incited/financed Georgian attack on Russian CIVILIANS in South Ossettia earlier this month. Bush/Mccain want to place missiles in Poland which is sure to create a new "missile crisis". Those US missiles in Poland have the same perceived intention as the Soviet missiles had in the Cuban missile crisis in the 60's.

Bullying, terrorizing, harassing, torture, intimidation, genocide, and propagandizing are not effective tools of diplomacy, nor are they appropriate as domestic policy. Neither do those methods demonstrate good will or good character. There has been no honor, integrity or justice in our foreign or domestic policies since 2001. With a third Bush administration; the depravity will only deepen.

Now that Sarah Palin is on the ticket; the fascist republican party will throw a lot of money at her ethics and abuse of power allegations to make it go away. If throwing money at her detractors won't change their stories: in true republican fashion; the republicans will throw bullets at them.

The theft of elections and cold blooded murder is nothing new or unheard of when republicans and their Zionist cohorts are involved.

He's no "was Hero". Bombing civilian apartment blocks in Hanoi makes him a WAR CRIMINAL!
He was never "tortured". If you can call having tea and cake with a Cuban psychologist while in captivity "torture"...I have this bridge in Brooklyn for sale. Interested?
John Mccain is the one who deliberately started the fire on the USS Forestall in 1967 that killed over 130 US sailors.
John Mccain is no "genius". He graduated in the BOTTOM 5 of his class at the naval academy. If his father hadn't been an Admiral; he would have been thrown out of the academy.
His father is also the one who refused to come to the aid of the USS Liberty when it was under attack by Nazi Israeli war planes.
John Mccain also cooperated and gave aid and comfort to the enemy.
John Mccain wants to do away with social security and tax any health insurance benefits we may be fortunate enough to have. He also wants to take away the tax breaks employers currently get for providing health care insurance so he can raise the tax breaks given to big oil.
John Mccain is also a bigamist who applied for a marriage license 9 months BEFORE his divorce was final. The slut he is married to is a member of the family that sold Budweiser (Annhauser/Busch) to anti-American Muslim investors.
His running mate would refuse the right to abortion to victims of rape, incest and cases where the mothers' life is in danger.
Do we really want to go back to 12th century demagoguery and the abject hypocritical mentality of these low life imbeciles?

With McBush/Palin it is not "more of the same". They will finish us off for good.

Do we really want a war criminal who has a junkie wife and a Governor with no scruples in the top spot? Having experienced life with an addicted spouse: it's almost impossible to run a household, let alone a totally screwed up country at the same time, and I didn't have the added burden of a proven backstabber chomping at the bit!

This piece of human excrement should be euthanized, not elected!

Q: What was the first thing war hero John McCain did when he got back to the US after being a POW?

A: He started screwing around on his wife!!! Yes, his first wife and mother of his three children who prayed for him everyday he was in captivity nearly died in a car accident and was severely disfigured. When she was no longer a beauty queen, John started sleeping around until he found a rich beauty queen to marry!

He’s disgusting.
www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1024927/The-wife-John-McCain-callously-left-behind.html

I enjoyed the article. I've disagreed with McCain on some issues but you have to know that he has more integrity than most of the politicians over time. http://www.phoenix-life-insurance.com/Arizona_Term_Life_Insurance.php. To be in Washington and only have a few blemishes on his resume is pretty good. I still think he'd be the better President, just from vast experience alone. Having someone with one years experience in the Senate does not give me goosebumps.

I would like to know WHY. Why do Arizonans keep electing this idiot over and over again?

Johnny B. Goode!Deep down in Arizona close to Mexico
Way back up in the cactuses where it never snows
There stood an ancient mansion made of gold and wood
Where lived a a corrupt politician named Johnny B Goode
Who’d never learned the difference between Sunni or Shia so well
But he could pretend to chase Osama to the gates of Hell

Go! Go! Go! Johnny!
Go! Go! Go! Johnny!
Go! Go! Go! Johnny!
Go! Go! Go! Johnny!
Go! Go! Johnny B. Goode!

He used to carry his bribe money in a gunnysack
Go sit beneath a tree and count his Keating kickbacks
Old lobbyist on K street would see him sittin’ in the shade
Laughing at the doubletalk and flip flops he made
The people passed him by they would stop and say
Oh my but that little old mummy really hates the gays

Go! Go! Go! Johnny!
Go! Go! Go! Johnny!
Go! Go! Go! Johnny!
Go! Go! Go! Johnny!
Go! Go! Johnny B. Goode!

Once upon time the state of Arizona couldn’t host a superbowl
Because it was legislated by a group of white supremacist trolls
The bigots were led by an angry fascist who was a goose-stepping man
A millionaire, senator who belonged to the Klu Klux Klan
Johnny B Goode was a maverick when it came to recognizing MLK
So the old cracker donned his klan robe and voted against a holiday

Go! Go! Go! Johnny!
Go! Go! Go! Johnny!
Go! Go! Go! Johnny!
Go! Go! Go! Johnny!
Go! Go! Johnny B. Goode!His mother told him someday you will be an old man
And you will be the leader of a murderous criminal clan
Many people will be blown to bits from miles around
To see you launch the nukes and take us all down
Maybe some day you will make mushroom clouds so bright
Sayin’ “Johnny B Goode pushed the button tonight”

Go! Go! Go! Johnny!
Go! Go! Go! Johnny!
Go! Go! Go! Johnny!
Go! Go! Go! Johnny!
Go! Go! Johnny B. Goode!

Dear Amy,
Thanks for the article, as an undecided voter, you have given me the information I needed to make a desition.

I am a 60 year old, registered Republican grandmother from Sedona, AZ. It’s funny how your world view changes when you have precious grandchildren. The reason I am supporting Barack Obama is because I feel that John McCain is out of touch with Arizona and the American people. As an Arizona Republican I received a fundraising letter from the McCain campaign. I sent it back with a note that says I will donate exactly the same amount that John McCain has requested in earmarks for our state. McCain’s call to fame is that he is the only representative in Washington never to request any earmarks for his home state. What does that prove? In my estimation John McCain has been the laziest representative in Washington in the last 26 years! To me it shows that in McCain’s mind Arizona does not need any assistance from Washington. He is happy to see all the tax dollars that we send to DC go to other states. Arizona has Indian Reservations with unemployment over 60%. We have beautiful rural areas that would greatly benefit from an increase in tourism. McCain’s lack of concern for Arizona shows that when John and Cindy fly over our state in their private plane that they do not pay attention to the people that live outside of Scottsdale. Lets see if in November the citizens of Arizona will send him a message and not vote for him. So this educated, white, Christian, Republican grandmother will be donating, ZERO, NOTHING, NONE, NADA! To the McCain Campaign. I did donate to the Obama campaign….

This is something you need to think about if you are planning to vote for the McCain/Palin ticket. Do you think McCain cares about the average American? – Think again! In 26 years John McCain voted against increasing the minimum wage 18 times.
In the same 26 years he voted for tax breaks for the wealthiest 2% of America 27 times. Why should that matter to you? McCain believes in a trickle down economy. You know if the wealthy get wealthier they will share with you. Obama believes in a trickle up economy, higher salaries for workingmen and women. When they earn more money they are able buy or keep homes, resulting in more employment in building trades. They buy clothes for their children, resulting in more Wal-Mart and GAP jobs. They will purchase new trucks and cars that will keep auto workers employed. Now what is better for this nation a trickle down economy or a trickle up economy? This republican is voting for Obama because we have tried a trickle down economy for eight years and look where this nation is now! Could it get any worse with Obama/Biden?
The old John McCain before he developed Alzheimer’s: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UHoXkCprdL4

So basically, the writer of this piece just doesn't like John McCain and knows some other people who feel the same way. What is the big deal about that? I hear plenty of stories about people who know someone who worked with Obama over the years and don't like him. McCain is a wealthy man with power and influence. It's not a big surprise that not everyone in the whole state likes him. But someone likes him, they keep electing him to represent them. That is worth something. So what he wasn't originally from AZ. Obama is not from Illinois either and no one makes a case out of that.