Blog 5: McCain the Centrist? Since when?

On the heels of the Baltimore riots (Need a summary? Click here), many are asking: What would Dr. Martin Luther King say?  Conservatives and liberals tend to agree, in many respects, that if only people were more like Dr. King, his style of protest, and leadership, the world would be a much better place.  This is important once you learn that Senator (then-Representative) McCain voted against a bill on August 2, 1983, according to GovTrack, which would make Martin Luther King, Jr. Day a federal holiday.  Representative McCain was right of center.  In the 1980's, filling Senator Goldwater's seat in the Senate, McCain certainly would not have been looked at as a moderate centrist, but that has since changed.

(Photo credit: http://www.quickmeme.com/meme/3ph246)

In his first Senate term, the 100th Congress, McCain was the 14th-most conservative Senator, according to his DW-score of 0.378.  The times would change, however, as Congress became more polarized, according to Dr. Keith Poole and Voteview.  In the latest complete Congress, the 113th, McCain was ranked the 33rd-most conservative Senate member.  Quite the jump in a few years.

With a much further-right Senate than McCain's initial days in D.C., he has now been deemed the 6th most progressive Senate Republican, according to GovTrack's annual scorecard.  Senator McCain has joined the 9th-most bipartisan bills off all Senators serving 10+ years.

Like all Senators, Senator McCain is often giving scores, or ratings, by special-interest groups.  For example, the Maverick almost always receives a 0-rating NARAL Pro-Choice America, very low scores from Planned Parenthood Action Fund, and a goose egg from the American Federation of Teachers, according to Votesmart.org.  In past years, Senator McCain has received high approval ratings from the American Shareholders Association, Americans for Prosperity, and Citizens Against Government Waste.  

Blog Four: Committees

"A committee is a group of the unprepared, appointed by the unwilling to do the unnecessary." - Fred Allen

John McCain serves as Chairman on the Armed Services Committee

"Senator John McCain serves as:

• Chairman of the Senate Committee on Armed Services;
• Member and former Chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs;
• Member of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs," according to Senator McCain's website.

Senator McCain’s Chairmanship on the Armed Services committee should come as no surprise given his military experience and Senatorial tenure.  The U.S. Senate Republicans announced their committee assignments for the 114^th Congress on December, 2014.  The Senate Armed Services standing committee is the 5^th most desired committee to serve on, according to Dr. Wanless’s lecture.  Paired with his Senatorial experience, Senator McCain personal experience and international relations involvement led to his committee assignment.  According to a CNN article (which announced McCain’s intent to run for his 6^th senate term), Senator McCain has been a “vocal critic” of President Obama, “Advocating for more aggressive intervention in Iraq and Syria to combat ISIS, and in Ukraine, to help the government fend off Russian-backed rebels.”

Senator McCain laid out his outline of priorities for the Armed Services committee in a recent presentation at a Center for Strategic & International Studies event.   He highlighted his concerns with Russia, China, Iran, asserting:

John McCain speaks at a Center for Strategic and International Studies

“States like these, while different in many ways, possess similar hegemonic ambitions, they practice a zero-sum realpolitik, ascribing themselves exclusive rights in old spheres of influence.  They embody a dangerous mix of nationalism and autocracy.  And they are modernizing their militaries in asymmetric ways that aim to negate American power projection.  Put simply, states like China, Russia, and Iran threaten to revise and roll back key tenets of the Liberal world order.”

Additionally, Senator McCain serves as a member on the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs and Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs.  Arizona, Senator McCain’s home state, has the third largest population of American Indians of all the states, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.  Senators from other densely-populated Native American regions - Wyoming, Montana, Washington, Idaho, Minnesota, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Kansas, Alaska, Hawaii, and New Mexico - round out the Senate Indian Affairs committee.

Blog 3: Re-election Odds for Senator McCain

Arizona is red, has been red, and will be red.

Senator Barry Goldwater

Senator McCain's predecessor, Barry Goldwater, redefined conservatism from Arizona.  So while it’s no doubt a conservative will be elected (for the foreseeable future), Senator McCain can’t fall asleep on the sidelines.

In his last Senate election (2010), Senator McCain garnered nearly twice as many votes as his Democratic challenger in the general election.  However, Senator McCain faced a “bitterly fought Republican primary” for his party’s nomination in 2010.

The Maverick’s toughest competition will not be a Democrat in 2016, but presumably a further-right conservative, according to the The Hill’s Senior Reporter Alexander Bolton and Arizona’s top newspaper The Arizona Republic.

Senator John McCain after winning
his 2010 re-election

With that said, Senator McCain is safe.  He has the 22^nd-most money of any sitting Senator in his war chest, with just over $2 million.  Also, let’s not forget Senator McCain raised and spent over $21 million on his 2010 Senate race.

Arizona supported Mitt Romney with 54.2% of the vote in the 2012 election, as part of a long-running streak of Republican presidential candidate support.  The state only voted for one Democrat, President Clinton's 1996 re-election, since 1948.

President Clinton after winning his
1996 re-election campaign.

Senator McCain should be somewhat concerned about his age, as he will be 80 years old on Election Night 2016.  Research studies at Stanford have suggested that people view old age as an "obstacle" (in the case of Bob Dole's 1996 presidential election.)

The Senator hinted at retirement, but all indications point to his re-election in 2016.

Skinny: Senator John McCain will run in 2016 and keep his Senate seat.

The McCain Blueprint

   Senator McCain’s strategy is to legislate and make things happen in Washington, and he continues to prove it.  This week, he made a claim that most people focused on getting re-elected wouldn't dare say.  (Let's just say, I don’t think what you’re about to read went through focus groups.)

Senator McCain joined news legend Bob Scheiffer on Face the Nation
to discuss Ukraine and Russia on Sunday (Image credit).

“I’m ashamed of my country, I’m ashamed of my president, and I’m ashamed of myself,” Senator McCain said this week over the United States’ passivity regarding Ukraine on CBS’s long-standing Face the Nation.

Senator McCain didn't get this move out of the credit-claiming playbook and it isn't the most stellar name-recognition advertising, but he sure is taking a position on the Russia-Ukraine controversy.

The battle-tested 78-year old congressman issued a bi-partisan call for tougher sanctions on Putin’s Russia, paired with increased military support to Ukraine, on Friday.

With his decorated military background, Senator McCain uses his experience and respect to take a difficult stance on a complicated issue of foreign policy.  In addition to being bold on issues, Senator McCain led the piece of legislation that restricts incumbency tools for re-election.

One of McCain’s landmark pieces of legislation is the McCain-Feingold Act, a campaign finance now-law which doesn't allow franking - or free mass mailings to constituents - during a year of an election for the seat held by the Congressperson. 

This, once again, shows McCain’s confidence which is displayed through bi-partisan politicking and taking a strong stance on a tough political issue.  He has a lock on his seat (according to the well-respected Cook Political Report), and clearly his constituents have proven through numerous re-elections that they support Senator McCain and his style.

Senator John McCain hosted newly-elected Senator Joni Ernst
to Arizona this week (Image)

Senator McCain will keep bouncing, a relative term for a slow-moving 78-year old, between Arizona and Washington, D.C.  Earlier this week, he hosted “rising GOP star” Senator Joni Ernst in Arizona according to his Twitter profile.  As a former presidential candidate, and long-time party leader, Senator McCain is an asset for the Republican Party to give legitimacy to folks like Senator Ernst.

Senator McCain will leave the United States Senate on his terms, and will continue to be policy leader for his party and the country until that day comes.

Senator John McCain

A young John McCain serving as a U.S. Naval officer. 
(Image: http://www.aei.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/mccainnavy.jpg)

Early call to public service...

   "As the son and grandson of Navy admirals, the values of duty, honor and service to county were instilled in John from a very young age. After graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy, John launched a 22-year career as a Naval aviator (http://johnmccain.com/about)."
   His military career would be tested with numerous near-death experiences, injuries with lasting impacts to today, and undesired ejections from an aircraft which broke both his arms and legs.  Now one of the most well-known prisoners of war, his time in the hands of the North Vietnamese included torture. (http://johnmccain.com/about)

Beyond the battleground...

   Before being a United States Senator in the state of Arizona, John McCain attended National War College, and later was assigned as a commanding officer to one of the Navy's largest aviation squadrons.  He retired from an honorable military career in 1981 with a host of top honors. (http://johnmccain.com/about)

Becoming a Senator...

   Like many, McCain served in the United States House of Representatives before moving over to the Senate.  The Purple Heart recipient advocated limited government and strong foreign policy, an area he earned a right to represent.  Representative McCain served in the House from 1983-1987 before winning a retiring Senator Barry Goldwater's seat. (http://johnmccain.com/about)

A run at the Oval Office...

   In 2008, Senator John McCain threw his hat into the ring for the 43rd presidency of the United States.  Running an ultimately unsuccessful bid with then-Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, Senator McCain lost out to a then-junior Senator from Illinois Barack Obama by the largest margin since President Clinton's race in 1992 (MIT).

Senator John McCain (R-AZ) will at times be criticized by his own party for taking an opposing view on issues.
(Image: http://guardianlv.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/John-McCain-Arizona-Maverick-Senator-Faces-Censure-650x487.jpg)

Senator McCain represents the state of Arizona in the United States Senate.  Here are important things to know about the cactus state:

* Almost 7 million people call Arizona home (Census).

* 84% of Arizonans are white (above national avg), 30.3% are Hispanic or Latino (above national avg), 5.3% are American Indian or Alaska Native (above national average), and only 4.6% are black (below national average) (Census).

* Arizona earned the Most Corrupt State in the Union award in a recent Harvard study (Harvard).

* The City of Phoenix, and the metropolitan area surrounding, makes up over 4 million of the state's 7 million inhabitants, making it the 13th largest metro area in the country (Wiki)

* The state is often in the national news for its sometimes infamous immigration policies from the border state (Huffington Post).