Though I abandoned Sen. McCain many months ago because of his immigration stance, I shall always admire him for his principals. Say what you want, at least he's been true to his beliefs, albeit unpopular here on FR. He's also been a true stalwart on the Global War on Terror--never wavering about need to defeat the jihadists and, though mostly hated by FReepers, he was right on the need for overwhelming force as a strategy to win--which was discarded by Rumsfeld, Perle, Wolfowitz and, initially, the president.
I totally agree with you on the war on terror stuff. He has been a stalwart and would make a find Commander in Chief. It is too bad the the White House didn’t listen to him on the need for overwhelming force. If they had, they wouldn’t be in the pickle they are in now. Unfortunately, McCain’s views on domestic issues ‘dun him in.’ And I wasn’t being sarcastic, I would bet you money that those who two quit were telling him all along that his immigration stance wouldn’t hurt his presidential chances. As we learned a couple of weeks ago, a lot of Beltway ‘experts’ have no clue how the rest of the country feels about the failure to secure our borders. If he had been as stalwart on border enforcement as he was on defense, I think he would have had a very good chance of becoming president.
In my book he is a great American for what he did in Vietnam alone, no matter what I disagree with him on now adays.
There are not too many other candidates running who I feel that way about, probably Duncan Hunter alone. That doesn't mean these guys will win, or should win, politics is about the future as much as the past.
But I will always deeply respect McCain for the seven years he spent in hell wearing a US Navy uniform.