While we often don’t get the flavor of John McCain that those ‘in the know’ back in Washington DC experience, the following essay describes the essence of the man John McCain, that some here in Arizona have experienced, and the resulting taste; that we’d desperately love to wash away this election season.
It’s from the July 19, 2010 edition of New York Magazine written by Joe Hagan. The title appropriately enough is:
“What would a Maverick Do?”
http://nymag.com/news/politics/67144/index
An early quote from the Hagan’s article pretty well sums up McCain’s dichotomy: “The former maverick who once fought his own party on everything from tax cuts to torture, who built a reputation as a prickly independent, now marches in lockstep with his party, from his objection to Sonia Sotomayor’s Supreme Court appointment to his support of a draconian new immigration law in Arizona that would have repulsed him three years ago.”
Now, THAT’S the John McCain we’ve come to know this campaign season. So what is this article really about?
The key word in this lengthy article is simply: “Paranoia”; as best exemplified in the next quote: “From the first, there has been a sense of urgency in this campaign that was absent from his presidential run. McCain told friends early on that he didn’t want to ‘go out like Barry Goldwater,’ his Arizona predecessor in the Senate, who barely eked out his last reelection bid. Though no credible candidate had yet appeared to challenge him, McCain harbored a healthy paranoia.”
The result of this paranoia is now clearly seen over the last year plus, as he desperateley traveled the state practically begging, cajoling, bribing or blackmailing elected officials for their endorsements. So concerned was he that, as Hagan aptly points out, as the campaign in 2008 McCain feared the conservative backlash in his own state. He worried greatly about a highly visible conservative running to his right, challenging him on his core values. That challenge from the right truly bothered him.
What he needed was a shell of a candidate that talked a good conservative talk, yet stood zero chance of winning. Along came Jim Deakin; a candidate so utterly unfit for this office prestigous office, and bereft of any political experience. So perfect is Deakin, THAT if John McCain did NOT encourage him to run through one of his intermediaries, with promises of significant military contracts; McCain TRULY would wish that he HAD RECRUITED HIM! So incredibly Machiavellian!
There’s much more to learn about the ‘not so wonderful’ side of McCain, that is covered so well in the article, that my analysis could not do it full justice.
Want to know more? About the John McCain known so well in the ‘other’ Washington? Read the rest of the article!
Now you’re just a liar, Samuel Adams. Deakin was not promised “significant military contracts” in order to run.
What is so disgusting is that you profane the name of a founding father, a man of high integrity and ethics.
I’m a JD supporter. I’ve donated and I’m voting for him. So, don’t even try to peg me to either Deakin or McCain.
It’s you whose crossed the line. It’s YOU who are hurting *OUR* candidate JD Hayworth.
You would have gained more votes by phone banking – which is honest campaigning – rather than writing profanities on the web.
Using the attacks of a far left publication to support the opposition candidate is supposed to be a good thing?
Just another “throw spaghetti at the wall” attempt by the Radical JD supporter…
The New Yorker would like nothing more than to see JD elected. An irrelevant, incompetent, under-performing Senator from a state sure to go red…yep. They would love JD.
JD Blowjoe. A loser running a losing campaign by posting loser statements and a loser blog.
MCCain + Win = This blog folding.
I do not know what Deakin is being promised, but it is significant enough to keep him in this race. With Deakin’s ego and McCain’s paranoia this election has come down to who can get their voters out. The only candidate we know will come up short is Deakin, he is just too inexperienced to know he and his few supporters are being duped. He tried to run out the clock on the forclosure of his home, and not taking care of his family for a future business deal. He knows he will never have a future in politics, but then I guess his so called patriotism left him for a conspiracy to help McCain get reelected at a cost to the Country he says he loves
The problem observers have is that Deakin isn’t going to win, period. So, why’s he still in the race?
Hmm. He could be either egotistically blinded, or stupid, but people have looked at his background and have decided he can’t be stupid. That leaves egotistical or he perceives he’s going to get something else out of it. A vote for Deakin is literally a vote for McCain. So, people are actually being charitable that they don’t think he’s egotistically blind, but that he has made some calculations and developed some expectations of a reasonable return of some sort for his efforts.
We could go back to “stupid” or “egotistical” but that requires more distance from reality than people are willing to accept of him. McCain practically misty-eyed embraced him as a long-lost brother during the debate, so that looked peculiar to say the least. It could be nothing more than the ephemeral camaraderie of “the enemy of my enemy is my friend.”
Do y’all buy your tin-foil by the case at Costco?
Heaven forbid some guy really wants to run without some sort of subversive action necessitating the effort. What does that say about your guy? His poll numbers are abysmal, his record is worse, his reputation is trashed (by his own actions) and he doesn’t have a snow-balls chance to win. But yet he insists on being a destructive and determined candidate?
So, who is behind Hayworth?
………………….
Ann Says:
August 13th, 2010 at 9:44 am
Do y’all buy your tin-foil by the case at Costco?
Heaven forbid some guy really wants to run without some sort of subversive action necessitating the effort.
………………….
No problem. If you’d rather, simple “Stupid” and/or “totally egotistical” is sufficient.
But who in their right mind would vote for that?
Who would want either of the two incumbants with 40 years of legislative mismanagement baggage between them? Two undesirable peas in a pod.
We all know Deakin won’t win, but to say that a vote for him is “a vote for McCain” is just wrong. A vote for Deakin does not add to McCain’s total, or detract from Hayworth’s. It has no effect on the McCain-Hayworth contest. Period. The folks I know who support Deakin cannot stomach either McLame or Hayworth. They’re using their vote to say “a pox on both of you.”
I love how the “conservatives” in the Hayworth camp seem to keep quoting left wing media attacks on McCain….LOL!
Jim Deakin’s companies, which he refused to disclose in any campaign literature, Detek, Inc. and Liberty Fire Protection, Inc. ALREADY received $100s of Thousand in contracts. In FY 2007 Liberty FP received $4,780, Detek received zero. IN FY 2008, ending September 30, 2008, Liberty FP received over $28,000 in gov’t contracts, a healthy increase, but NOTHING to write home about. HOWEVER, DETEK, Inc., a Design and Consulting Personal Services firm, in that same year, also ending JUST before the election, received OVER $637,000 in government contracts VIRTUALLY ALL in the military services departments!!
almost 50% were NO BID contracts, over $130,000 were contracts with only one bid! NOW that’s pretty damn convenient!
Oberserve, your powers are definitely NOT in the skill of observation and comprehension! Here is what I wrote: “So perfect is Deakin, THAT if John McCain did NOT encourage him to run through one of his intermediaries, with promises of significant military contracts; McCain TRULY would wish that he HAD RECRUITED HIM!”
Now read it real slow. You might understand it better. Get it now? Do you see the word “if”?
No, Kohut wants someone who can’t manage his personal finances, the failure of which, in Kohut’s mind QUALIFIES Deakin for the US Senate. Deakin took over $200K in equity from his home in a rapid series of refinancings from 2002-2007. Had he left well enough alone, is there any doubt that Mr. Deakin could have handled a $164,400 original loan balance from 1999 or the WHOPPING $376,000 balance in 2007!
NOW Stephen, HOW many common men have that big of a mortgage balance on their homes? I know I never have! Deakin is irresponsible and unfit to be US Senator. Period, end of story.
What’s next Stephen, letting that escaped murderer become a Superior Court Judge or a Sheriff?
Steven Robinon AKA Radical American Patriot AKA AZ Cowboy AKA Samual Adams,
You need to change how you write if you don’t want people to know who you are.
2 peas, 1 pod, 40 years of crap legislation
enough said
Stephen Kohut, If you don’t want people to see through your completely dishonest and UTTERLY despicable BS, start telling the TRUTH! Is that TOO MUCH for you to consider doing?
Hope that won’t be too painful for you!
So tell me, HOW much of the vote will the fiscally incompetent, corrupt, lying Deakin get in this primary? After all you believe he will win, right? Oh, you didn’t know, that was NEVER Jim Deakin’s goal. Either that or he is really a stupid campaigner as well…
For the record, I don’t think Jim Deakin is stupid, a lot of other things (though ‘honest’ is NOT one of them!) perhaps but not stupid!
Steven Robinson