I enjoyed reading Senator John McCain’s book during the 2000 election cycle, about his service in the military and time in a Vietnam prisoner of war camp.   He seemed to be a real hero.  I also recall fondly bumping into him occasionally at the "social Safeway" in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia when my wife and I worked in the  Reagan Administration.   I specifically recall one instance where he was closely observing a Romaine Lettuce and I approached him to say he was getting a raw deal on the "Keating Five" scandal in the media.   The next time I met him was at a private meeting with the Board of Directors of the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association in Los Angeles, that Mrs. Jarvis attended.   We talked about his presidential ambitions but I voiced a small concern about his idea on campaign finance reform.  He didn’t have much of an answer when I asked about implications to the First Amendment.

    Today Cindy McCain is reported to have appeared in a television advertisement in support of gay marriage.   This report comes on the same day that the U.S. Supreme Court, in yet another decision, has further clobbered the so-called "McCain-Feingold" campaign finance reform package on First Amendment grounds.   The very same measure I contritely mentioned in a meeting with him at the HJTA Los Angeles offices about 10 years ago.  "McCain-Feingold" was a terrible affront to the First Amendment to our Constitution, and it is all but dead now.   As I look back on it, I think McCain supported it, basically to wash away his sins in the "Keating Five" scandal.

     John McCain was a good Congressman.   Ronald Reagan supported him.   But Nancy didn’t like him leaving his wife for Cindy, and that development started a trail of guffaws.   The McCain-Feingold bill was awful.   The Keating Five scandal was awful.   His campaign for President in 2008 was awful.  And Cindy’s advertisement for gay marriage is awful.  I think John McCain has become a terrible waste of effort for Republican volunteers.   I look forward to new leadership.

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 21st, 2010 at 12:00 am and is filed under Blog Posts.