THE REAL JOHN McCAIN?

Steve Schmidt’s publication this past weekend of his account regarding his dealings with John S. McCain has brought up again the question of who John McCain is. War hero? Crusading politician? Man of integrity? Opportunist? Or perhaps liar, cheat, coward or disappointment?

Like everyone, McCain is many-faceted.

His full name is John Sidney McCain III. The first John S. McCain was one of the most well-known of the Navy’s senior admirals in the Pacific War, commander of the fast carrier task force under “America’s fightingest admiral” William F. Halsey Jr., while the second made a name for himself as a junior officer commanding a submarine in that war and became Pacific Fleet commander during the Vietnam War. Both were controversial in their separate ways and there’s as much to be said about both of them as there is for the third John McCain, and those who are interested in long and convoluted tales can find their stories in my Pacific War quadrilogy for the senior McCain, and “The Tonkin Gulf Yacht Club.” (The preceding is a shameless personal plug)

Thus, when John S. McCain III entered Annapolis in 1954, much was expected of him. The naval academy has had several generations of naval families as cadets, but very few were ever third-generation like he was. Neither senior McCain had distinguished academic records when they attended, but both managed to graduate in the upper third of their classes. There’s a famous saying that “The first generation makes it, the second generation keeps it, and the third generation loses it.” In many ways, that arc can be seen in the McCain odyssey. John S. McCain III graduated 894 of 899 in the class of 1958 (he had good grades in history and literature and hated math and science - I can relate); he had a reputation for “collecting demerits the way others collect stamps,” “partying hearty,” and standing up to bullies on behalf of others.

Normally, Naval Aviation is only a career option to those who graduate in the top 20 percent. But the grandson of the commander of Task Force 38 somehow managed to get orders to flight training at Pensacola. He scored so poorly there that he was shunted off into the Skyraider; this is a famous airplane with a sterling war record in both Korea and Vietnam, but by the early 1960s it had garnered the nickname “Spad” through the fleet in memory of a World War I fighter and acknowledgment that an airplane designed in 1944 that wasn’t a jet was not “the cutting edge” on a carrier deck any more.

In 1963, Lieutenant (Junior Grade) McCain decided to do some “flat hatting” in his Skyraider, flying at low level across southern Spain, and managing to catch a power line with his tailhook, snapping the power line and creating a 30-hour power outage across southern Spain; this was his third accident in 14 months, the first two resulting in loss of the aircraft, with this one resulting in “moderate damage.” For most junior aviators, this record would be a career-killer, three strikes and you’re out; but for the son of a newly-promoted Vice Admiral seen as a “comer” and grandson of Admiral Halsey’s carrier commander, the result was a quiet transfer from the Atlantic Fleet to the Pacific Fleet, where there weren’t any large pieces of foreign real estate where a similar incident could occur.

Once in San Diego, McCain quickly moved up to Lieutenant. He met and married Carol Shepp in June 1965. With a now-clean record, he managed to get jet training and joined the Skyhawk community, flying the A-4 Skyhawk ground attack fighter and moved up to Lieutenant Commander the first time he was eligible for promotion.

In 1967, he became the third McCain to go to war, when he was assigned to VA-46 aboard USS Forrestal (CVA-59), the first “super carrier.” The ship arrived in Southeast Asia at the end of June and was on her first tour at Yankee Station in the Gulf of Tonkin on July 29, 1967.

The Navy had been experiencing a ‘bomb shortage” since the fall of 1966, which by the summer of 1967 saw old Korean War-era bombs that had been poorly cared for sent to the carriers, along with faulty Zuni rockets that were the product of increased production without proper quality control. The 1953-vintage bombs recently transferred to Forrestal were in such bad condition the commanding officer of the Subic Bay naval ordnance detachment was shocked when he learned they were going to a carrier and not to disposal, and initially refused to approve the transfer in the belief a paperwork mistake had been made; he only signed after receiving written orders from CINCPAC that explicitly absolved his unit of responsibility for the bombs. When they were arrived on Forrestal, one ordnance officer wondered out loud if the old weapons would survive the shock of a catapult-assisted launch without a spontaneously detonation and suggested they be immediately jettisoned.

On July 29, an Alpha Strike was ready for launch and the flight deck was wing-to-wing with 21 aircraft loaded with bombs, rockets, ammunition, and fuel. Several of the old bombs hung from the racks of the waiting aircraft while the rest were in the bomb farm next to other bombs. Among the Skyhawk pilots was LCDR John S. McCain III.

At about 1045 hours, Forrestal turned into the wind and increased speed in preparation for launch. At 1051 hours, LCDR Commander James E. Bangert switched his F-4 from external to internal power; an electrical surge happened and one of the Zuni rockets in the pod on stores station 2 - which were supposed to be protected from an accidental launch by a safety pin which was only removed immediately prior to launch from the catapult, which was later found to be missing - fired.

It flew 100 feet, severing a crewman’s arm and rupturing the 400-gallon external fuel tank on the Skyhawk LCDR Robert "Bo" Browning was in awaiting launch. Fortunately, the rocket broke apart on impact, but JP-5 jet fuel spurted from the ruptured tank and spread under the A-4s of LT White and LCDR John S. McCain to either side of Browning. The fuel ignited by burning rocket propellant, creating an instantaneous conflagration.

McCain later remembered a “whooshing” sound, followed by a “low level explosion.” The two A-4s in front of him caught fire. The now-raging fire was fanned by the 32-knot wind that swept the deck. Fire Quarters was sounded at 1052 hours, followed by General Quarters.

A moment later, one old bomb fell to the deck, rolling into a pool of burning fuel between White's and McCain's aircraft. When McCain exited his A-4, he saw Browning on fire and turned to help him when the bomb detonated, knocking him backwards ten feet and wounding him. Despite his injuries, McCain was able to save Browning’s life.

A crater was blown in the armored flight deck. Burning fuel poured into occupied berthing compartments below. Every airplane on the aft deck was damaged. Ten seconds after the first detonation, two more old bombs exploded, while a fourth blew up 44 seconds later. By 1055 hours, eight 1,000-pound bombs, one 750-pound bomb, one 500-pound bomb, and several missile and rocket warheads exploded. A ninth explosion came.

Finally, at 0020 hours on July 30, 14 hours later, all fires were controlled. Losses were 134 dead and 161 injured in the worst loss of life aboard a Navy ship since World War II. Of the 73 aircraft aboard, 21 were destroyed and 40 were damaged. Forrestal was under repair for the next two years.

When Forrestal returned to the U.S.. John McCain volunteered for transfer to VA-163 aboard USS Oriskany (CVA-34). In later years after McCain entered politics, rumors spread that the fire had been started by one of his “jokes;,” he was known for performing a “wet start” in his A-4 that would result in flame shooting out the exhaust. The fact he was so quickly transferred brought up memories of his rapid transfer from Spain in 1963, and the story grew that the son and grandson of Admirals had started the fire and then been protected by higher-ups again. In my research writing “Tonkin Gulf Yacht Club,” I can confirm this is not true, though I began my research believing it was.

On October 26, 1967, on his 23rd mission over North Vietnam, John McCain violated Rule Number One of air combat: Do Not Turn Around And Fly Low And Slow Over A Target You Have Just Bombed. His A-4E was hit by flak and he only managed to get out on the third try of the ejection seat trigger, during which his shoulders were broken when he hit the cockpit sill. Captured when he went into a lake south of Hanoi, he spent the next five years and three months in the Hanoi Hilton as a POW. The North Vietnamese knew his father hd become the commander of the Navy’s Pacific Fleet in 1968; some said he was given “special treatment” as a result, but as is documented in his memoir “Faith of My Fathers” and confirmed by others who were there, the “special treatment” was worse treatment. His injuries incurred in the punchout were not immediately treated, and as a result he was unable to raise his arms above his shoulders the rest of his life.

During these years in prison, John McCain found that inner core he had not known he had, and became the man people like Steve Schmidt would later admire and work for. Once an officer became a POW, they were placed on automatic promotion by their service; McCain became a Commander and then a Captain (Navy equivalent of a Colonel) by the time he returned home in February 1973.

While he was held prisoner, Carol McCain became a leading voice among the POW families and was the definition of the “loyal Navy wife.” She was severely injured in an automobile accident in December 1969. In February 19173, she was four inches shorter, in a wheelchair or on crutches, and substantially heavier than when he had last seen her. As a returned POW, he became a celebrity.

Once back in the Navy, McCain underwent treatment for his injuries and attended the National War College in 1973–1974. Considered fully rehabilitated by late 1974, his flight status was reinstated and in 11976 he became commander of the Fleet Replacement Squadron at NAS Jacksonville, Florida. While the unit won its first-ever Meritorious Unit Commendation under his command, he also had extramarital affairs, and his marriage began to falter. This happened publicly enough that the Navy took official notice; even in those days, such behavior was such that it was soon clear there would not be a third Admiral McCain in the Navy. Naval Aviators I have known who were familiar with his record have said that - but for his being shot down and becoming a POW with “promotion privilege” - McCain would likely have been passed over for promotion to Commander with all his “extracurricular hijinks.” This is the point in a naval officer’s career where he is judged for his promise as a future commanding officer; a Lieutenant Commander gets three chances for promotion; failing to make the cut means his career is over at 20 years.

Having failed at Jacksonville McCain was given a new lease on life when he was ordered to Washington D.C., to join the Navy’s Congressional Liason Office in 1977, where it was believed his reputation as a POW hero would be of value in dealing with congressmen whose votes the Navy needed for programs and equipment they wanted. This office is much different in its operation today, with the rise of women to senior positions in the armed services, but in the 1970s, an officer who came from a background of being able to “party hearty” was very valuable in the “frathouse” atmosphere backstage in the Congress of those days. He was successful in gaining Congressional approval for another “Nimitz” class super carrier that the Carter Administration opposed; one can only imagine what wonders were wrought in the back rooms and Washington night clubs to achieve that result. McCain found he liked politics, and he decided that he would leave the Navy when his tour in Washington was over, and stand for elective office somewhere.

In April 1979, McCain met Cindy Lou Hensley, a teacher from Phoenix and heiress to the largest beer distributorship in the Southwest. He began another extramarital affair with her and asked his first wife Carol to grant him a divorce, which took effect in April 1980, shortly after his retirement from the Navy. McCain and Hensley were married on May 17, 1980, with Senators William Cohen and Gary Hart attending. While a pre-nup kept the Hensley finances separate, he now had the status to enter elective politics, using his father-in-law’s connections in Arizona. As a “navy brat” growing up and then a naval officer, he had never really resided anywhere that long until now.

McCain moved into the Phoenix political community, working as VP of publicity for his father-in law. He also made a connection with banker Charles Keating. In 1982 the First District House seat opened; he ran for it with the financial and political support of his new family, and won as a supporter of Reagan and “Reaganomics.” In Washington, following re-election in 1984, he was primarily active with foreign relations, as a supporter of the Reagan policies in Central America.

He ran for Berry Goldwater’s senate seat when Goldwater retired in 1986, and won. His Washington career was nearly upended by involvement with the Keating Five scandal, in which he met as a senator with federal banking regulators to lobby on behalf of Charles Keating and Lincoln Savings, one of the premier examples of the Savings and Loan crisis of the late 80s. By admitting to poor judgement and throwing himself on the mercy of voters, he emerged successfully with re-election in 1992.

Among his Senate successes was his organizing bipartisan support for the restoration of relations with Vietnam. His position as a former POW who had personally journeyed to Vietnam and met with his former enemies gave him a moral authority that was crucial.

So, over the years, John S. McCain has established himself as a genuine war hero. At the same time, he has demonstrated the “personal failures” many politicians have been guilty of. There are two good movies that explain much of the political milieu McCain came from and how he operated. Interestingly, both involve main characters who are liberal Democrats, which to me demonstrates that the issues of personal integrity and morality are thoroughly bipartisan. Those movies are “The Candidate,” a film from the 70s starring robert Redford as a candidate who isn’t John Tunney, and “The Seduction of Joe Tynan,” starring Alan Alda and Merle Streep, with Alda a senator who isn’t Ted Kennedy. If you haven’t seen them, they’re both still educational since the only things that have changed in politics are the hair styles and the wardrobes.

I have known politicians like McCain personally. I worked for one who will remain unnamed here, who was as inspirational to idealistic people like me as McCain was for a guy like Steve Schmidt. The difference as I experienced it between my guy and what Schmidt describes with McCain was that my guy never got high enough in the political ecosystem for his personal failings to have the political fallout McCain’s did.

Famously, Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald were engaged in a political discussion while participating in their favorite activity, drinking, during which Hemingway observed that “the rich are different from us,” to which Fitzgerald responded, “Yes, they have money.” He was being more serious in his reply than has been supposed. The same can be said of politicians. Both (often the same guys) are different from the average person. They think bigger in terms of what they decide is possible. Unfortunately, when they are successful, they often come to think that their presence, their participation, is important enough that their “foibles” should be ignored. As Steve Schmidt found - and I found - those who serve them can find themselves expected to take the blame for things “way above the pay grade” in covering up those mistakes.

One of the things I have learned from my study of history is that the story I have told here has been told many times about nearly everyone whose experiences and achievements have meant their name has survived to be recalled in history. Shakespeare, Tacitus, Gibbon and the rest would be unemployed were it otherwise. I’ve met and known people who have done great things, and known some people who knew those who did greater things, and I have yet to have run across one of those people who was all one thing, or even primarily one thing more than others of the elements that made up who they were. Even my childhood hero - who I actually met and got to know - turned out to be a guy who I ended up losing respect for.

Sadly, the story here is not the admirable hero of media lore these past 50 years. I have gone back and forth about John McCain, from thinking him honorable to thinking him a scumbag, and back again. He and Schmidt - according to Schmidt’s account - came to accept and respect each other in the end. That’s probably about as good as can be expected.

In the scheme of things, there are many people who have done far worse things than McCain did, as disappointing as he could be. But he is a good example that one should never put all their hopes in an individual in the expectation they will change everything for the better.

I have only ever run across three of these people I’ve known or studied (or both) who didn’t at some important point, in some important way, disappoint me.

But my world has certainly been interesting running across them. I once had a conversation with Billy Wilder about all this. He observed, “These people - without them, we’re nothing.”

But without our belief in them, it’s they who are nothing. We need to remember that, when looking at leaders.

It’s why Judgement is always portrayed as balancing scales.

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