John McCain's house is divided, will it stand?

Posted on Friday, December 31, 2010 at 08:18 AM

Larger Text

E-mail

8 Comments

RSS

Archives

It's tempting to wonder how Christmas passed in John McCain's house. It doesn't take much to imagine the atmosphere probably got a little Macbeth-ish at times.

Married to a woman who defied him by publicly acknowledging the connection between anti-gay laws and anti-gay bullying (a point of view that she then sadly and almost wordlessly retracted) there must have been some tense moments in the upscale Arizona mansion.

And consider that as he looked across his well appointed table at his own high profile daughter Meghan, McCain was contemplating yet another betrayal: her ardent support for marriage equality for gays is well known.

He must have feared for the GOP. He must have feared for the future. He may even have feared for himself. As the greatest of all Republican politicians once remarked: a house divided can not stand.

And worst betrayal of all, from McCain's point of view, was the repeal of DADT. Although he hasn't been a member of the US armed forces for decades - and there have been quite a few changes in bootcamp in the interim - he is still consulted as a supposed "expert" on military matters by the media, if no longer by the Pentagon.

So it was sad to see McCain use his platform to search for a legitimate reason to flout the wishes of the President, the military's top brass, the majority of active service members and the American public.

Apparently still enraged by his no-contest loss to Barack Obama, it doesn't seem to take much to tilt McCain over into the red zone these days, as his recent blistering exchanges with his Senate colleagues will attest.

The truth is McCain's personal contempt for the President has turned him into a give-no-quarter Republican hardliner. But it should be remembered that deep personal antipathy is the worst possible guide to enlightened decision making, although we're two years and one Sarah Palin beyond all that now.

When private passion overruns public principle you're setting the stage for tragedy - just ask William Shakespeare. His plays are filled with once noble men surrendering to their baser natures with devastating consequences for everyone in their orbit.

McCain's spectacular acts of fury and sabotage seem certain to continue. But from the outside it's beginning to look like the person they'll discredit most is the man himself.

E-mail

8 Comments

See all comments

MICHEAL | Jan 01, 2011, 02:46 PM EST

It is a very sad state-of-mind for Mccain. Once a man of principles now only a very sad person. I feel sorry for him & his loss of interigty.

Report abuse

Monsoonman | Dec 31, 2010, 06:57 PM EST

"(thanks to crashing the fifth Navy plane he'd been given control over)"...Aircraft don't handle very well after they have a missile the size of a telephone pole detonate on their aircraft. Just how many aircraft have you landed on a rocking and rolling carrier deck at night during a heavy storm? How many have you flown through hostile skies filled with missiles trying to kill you?...Really, none? Didn't think so.

Report abuse

SCVMal | Dec 31, 2010, 05:19 PM EST

McCain was on high ground before G W Bush defeated him, then McCain compromised himself and then his own future! The bottom line is that even with a female(?) running mate, McCain was defeated in his run for the Presidency by a black man. And that same black man defeated McCain again with the ouster of DADT.

Report abuse

jamthecat | Dec 31, 2010, 04:45 PM EST

John McCain was always a nasty piece of work, even before he became a POW (thanks to crashing the fifth Navy plane he'd been given control over) and is now just plain senile. You want to hero-worship him for his days as a POW, that's your prerogative...but don't blast others who look at him and his actions with the questions they deserve. NO ONE is above careful scrutiny, these days. Absolutely no one.

Report abuse

glorybe1929 | Dec 31, 2010, 03:50 PM EST

"Hollow shell of a man"How can you judge him? You shall be judged by the same standsrd that you judge him by.

Report abuse

glorybe1929 | Dec 31, 2010, 03:43 PM EST

John McCain is a very honorable man, who was in a prisoner of war camp for "you",because he fought for the freedoms you enjoy in this country. shame on anyone who says he isn't. His family may believe in what ever they like. This is America and he fought to protect these rights. This is not a dictatorship. It is a Country that still has. free speech. We're all trying to keep it that way. Keep watch my friends, so your children may enjoy it too!

Report abuse

PhlutiePhan | Dec 31, 2010, 12:51 PM EST

Your article was good until the summation. There is no doubt of the honor of the man. There is also no doubt of the "spooky" decisions made by someone damanged by his war experience. There is no doubt that his pick of Sarah Palin destroyed his support among independents in Pennsyvania. This was his Waterloo. His wife and daughter are Machiavellian in manipulating and destroying him from within.

Report abuse

joma5004 | Dec 31, 2010, 09:19 AM EST

A hollow shell of a man who should have retired long ago. He is ineffective as a Senator and worries more about his own hide than that of the people who elected him. He is willing and too able to disregard facts and expouse his own tired beliefs. His time is over!

Report abuse