Posted by garylmoore to Sir Francis Dashwood
On News/Activism ^ 01/22/2008 11:09:04 PM PST · 20 of 22 ^
John McCain is a maverick senator and former Vietnam veteran and prisoner of war for 5 years in North Vietnam.
1. Here are some negative allegations:
- McCain was one of the Keating Five, congressmen investigated on ethics charges for strenuously helping convicted racketeer Charles Keating after he gave them large campaign contributions and vacation trips.
Charles Keating was convicted of racketeering and fraud in both state and federal court after his Lincoln Savings & Loan collapsed, costing the taxpayers $3.4 billion. His convictions were overturned on technicalities; for example, the federal conviction was overturned because jurors had heard about his state conviction, and his state charges because Judge Lance Ito (yes, that judge) screwed up jury instructions. Neither court cleared him, and he faces new trials in both courts.)
Though he was not convicted of anything, McCain intervened on behalf of Charles Keating after Keating gave McCain at least $112,00 in contributions. In the mid-1980s, McCain made at least 9 trips on Keating’s airplanes, and 3 of those were to Keating’s luxurious retreat in the Bahamas. McCain’s wife and father-in-law also were the largest investors (at $350,000) in a Keating shopping center; the Phoenix New Times called it a sweetheart deal.
- Mafia ties: In 1995, McCain sent birthday regards, and regrets for not attending, to Joseph Joe Bananas Bonano, the head of the New York Bonano crime family, who had retired to Arizona. Another politician to send regrets was Governor Fife Symington, who has since been kicked out of office and convicted of 7 felonies relating to fraud and extortion.
- At least one veteran’s group (U.S. Veteran’s Dispatch) really hates him, and accuses McCain of cooperating with the North Vietnamese while he was their prisoner. They also sketch McCain’s ties, through his wealthy father-in-law, to various Arizona scandals including the murder of reporter Don Bolles.
Check out their version at the US Veteran’s Dispatch web site.
- Family troubles: McCain has a reputation as a politician who has difficulty keeping his pants zipped, according to Republican sources. He acknowledges that his adultery broke up his first marriage. His second wife Cindy, the daughter of a wealthy Budweiser beer distributor, was addicted to prescription narcotics and even stole hard drugs from a medical charity that she ran. McCain acknowledges that she didn’t want him to run, and only agreed once he promised that she doesn’t have to go to New Hampshire or Iowa.
Quotes:
- Do you know why Chelsea Clinton is so ugly? Because Janet Reno is her father. — John McCain
Sources:
The Pampered Politician , by Amy Silverman, The Phoenix New Times, May 15, 1997
See John Run Off at the Mouth , Phoenix New Times, October 1, 1998
Opiate for the Mrs. , Phoenix New Times, September 8, 1994
Flashes: What’s Up, Murdoch? , Phoenix New Times, September 17, 1998
the US Veteran’s Dispatch web site.
Symington Gets Slammer , Phoenix New Times, February 2, 1998
Election 98: Arizona Governor, Fox News web site, 1998 coverage (no longer on web)
Keating Gets New Trial , CNNfn Web Site, December 2, 1996
No More Wagging, , (editorial) by Maureen Dowd, The New York Times, January 3, 1999
John McCain, rock-and-roll dad , by Andrew Essex, The New Yorker Magazine, December 6, 1999 p52
Unmasking Darth McCain , by William Cleeland, The Daily Illini, March 9, 2001
Actually that's pretty good - got any more? I understand they're paying big for material on late night shows.