Birthdate: 1936-08-29


Birthplace: Coco Solo Air Base Hospital in the then-American-controlled Panama Canal Zone


Hometown: Alexandria, Virginia, Phoenix, Arizona 


Family:

Spouse: Carol Shepp

Occupation: Model
Married: July 3, 1965 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  
Divorced: April 2, 1980  
 
John McCain and Carol Shepp met in 1964 while he was at the United States Naval
Academy in Annapolis. Carol Shepp had been married to and was divorced from one
of McCains classmates at the academy and had two children.  John McCain adopted
her two sons soon after the wedding and daughter Sidney was born in 1966. A year
later, McCain was sent to Vietnam as a bomber pilot on an aircraft carrier, was
captured and became a POW.  Carol would not see him again for almost six years.

On Christmas Eve 1969 Carol Shepp McCain was in an automobile accident and
thrown through her car's windshield sustaining serious injuries.  Despite her
condition and caring for three young children, she refused to allow her POW
husband to be notified, fearing that the news would affect him while he was
still being held prisoner. When McCain returned home in 1973, he found that his
wife was a different person. The accident had "left her 4 inches shorter and on
crutches, and she had gained a good deal of weight."

Spouse: Cindy Hensley McCain;

• Children: Sydney McCain, Doug Shepp, Andy Shepp, Meghan McCain, John
Sidney McCain IV, James McCain, Bridget McCain




Religion:

• Episcopal


Education:

• Episcopal High School in Alexandria,VA., graduated in 1954.

• United States Naval Academy, 1958; 

McCain, the son and grandson of Navy admirals, graduated 894th of 899 in his
Naval Academy class in 1958.  His class rank was low due to poor grades for
acedemics, conduct and leadership, which reflected his sloppy appearance,
rebellious attitude, and poor relations with his company officer.  

A free spirit, McCain chafed under the strict rules of the academy. He
maintained his membership in the "Century Club" each year by earning more than
100 demerits. McCain's bio in the academy yearbook read: "Sturdy
conversationalist and party man. John's quick wit and clever sarcasm made him a
welcome man at any gathering. His bouts with the academic and executive
departments contributed much to the stockpiles of legends within the hall."  

He had neither been ordered to go there by his parents nor discussed
alternatives; as he later wrote, "I remember simply recognizing my eventual
enrollment at the Academy as an immutable fact of life, and accepting it
without comment."  


• National War College, 1973; 



• When asked about his best and worst grades or subjects in school, McCain
replied, "I never got good grades."


Military Service:

• Naval aviator training, Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida.

• United States Navy 1958-1981, Pilot, Captain, with service in Vietnam; 

• Prisoner of war, Vietnam, 1967-1973; 

• Awards: Silver Star, Legion of Merit, Purple Heart and Distinguished Flying
Cross




Career:

• Senator, United States Senate, 1987-present 

• Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, 1995-2001, 2003-2005;

• Chair, Committee on Indian Affairs, 1995-1997, 2005-2007;

• Representative, United States House of Representatives, 1983-1987;

• Republican presidential candidate, 2000



Present Position:

Senator from Arizona



John McCain position on the War in Iraq:

• As a senator in October 2002, McCain voted to support a joint resolution to
authorize the use of United States Armed Forces against Iraq.

• He remains a very stark supporter of President Bush's policies but has
criticized the management of the war.

• McCain supports the present troop increase and favors maintaining troop
levels.  He has also defended moral justifications for the war.




John McCain position on Immigration:

• McCain supports amnesty / permanent legalization for illegal aliens and
temporary legalization for illegal aliens as guest workers.

• He initially supported the temporary guest worker program that failed to
advance in US Senate and then his position to emphasize border security first.

• Advocates tightening of the border by increasing patrols.

• He would increase the number of visas issued for agricultural workers.

• McCain supports relaxing the restrictions barring legal immigrants from using
social programs such as food stamp, health care and housing.




John McCain position on Health Care:

• McCain opposes universal health care.

• He supports importing prescription drugs to lower costs.
 
• He would offer a refundable $2,500 tax credit and $5,000 for families.

• He would open health care markets by allowing providers to practice
nationwide, rather than restricting them regionally, allowing the purchase of
health insurance across state lines. 




John McCain position on Abortion:

Pro-Life


• McCain is anti-abortion; he believes that abortions should be legal only when
the pregnancy resulted from incest, rape, or when the life of the woman is
endangered.

• In August 1999, CNN reported the McCain statement concerning Roe v. Wade,
"I'd love to see a point where it is irrelevant, and could be repealed because
abortion is no longer necessary. But certainly in the short term, or even the
long term, I would not support repeal of Roe v. Wade, which would then force X
number of women in America to undergo illegal and dangerous operations."

• On February 2007, in South Carolina McCain said, "I do not support Roe versus
Wade. It should be overturned."  He believes Roe v. Wade is a flawed decision
that must be overturned, and as president he will nominate judges who
understand that courts should not be in the business of legislating from the
bench.  This is a change in position from his 1999 statement.

• McCain wants to prohibit late-term abortion procedures and said, "I would do
everything in my power to ban that horrible procedure of partial-birth
abortion."

• He would prohibit public funding of abortions and public funding of
organizations to promote or perform abortions.

• Asked in January 2000 if he would tell his teenage daughter that she could
not get an abortion if she became pregnant, McCain says, "The final decision
would be made by Meghan with our advice and counsel." He later called reporters
to say it would be a "family decision, not her decision." 

• McCain voted NO to an amendment of the Senate's 2006 Fiscal Year Budget that
allocates $100 million in funding to reduce teen pregnancy by education and
contraceptives.




John McCain position on National Security:

• He voted for the Patriot Act and all of its revisions.
 
• McCain wants intelligence officials to have all tools they need to fight
terrorism.
 
• He opposes detaining enemy combatants without giving them legal rights. 

• He generally opposes the interests of the American Civil Liberties Union.




John McCain position on the Environment:

• He believes in global warming and that our nation cannot ignore it.

• McCain feels that cutting emissions throughout the market will force cleaner
technology. 




John McCain position on Trade:

• McCain is a supporter of free trade.

• McCain wants to lower trade barriers.  Ninety-five percent of the world's
customers lie outside our borders and he says we need to be at the table when
the rules for access to those markets are written. To do so, he thinks the U.S.
should engage in multilateral, regional and bilateral efforts to reduce barriers
to trade, level the global playing field and build effective enforcement of
global trading rules. He believes these steps would also strengthen the U.S.
dollar and help to control the rising cost of living that hurts our families.



John McCain position on Social Security:

• McCain believes that Social Security is failing because it is raided to fund
other government programs.

• He supports allowing workers to invest a portion of their payroll tax in
private accounts which they would manage themselves. 




John McCain position on Prescription Drugs:

• McCain advocates expanding prescription drug coverage under Medicare.

• He supports importing prescription drugs to lower costs.




John McCain position on the Budget:

McCain says that he will balance the federal budget by the end of his first term
by curbing wasteful spending and overhauling entitlement programs, including
Social Security. 

• McCain would attack excessive government spending and reduce budget deficits
through cuts in spending to parts of the budget that do not finance Social
Security, Medicare and other entitlement programs.

• He wants affluent participants in the Medicare drug program to pay higher
premiums.




John McCain position on Energy:

• McCain supports alternative energies.

• He wants to look at more nuclear possibilities.

• McCain recently supported off-shore-drilling as a way to address the rising
price of oil and gas.  This is a contradiction to his earlier opposition to the
drilling.




John McCain position on the Economy:

• He supports lowering taxes to help small businesses.

• He would cut the corporate tax rate from 35% to 25%.

• McCain supports giving tax breaks to businesses for investing in equipment
and technology. 

• He wants to establish a permanent tax credit for research and development.




John McCain position on Education:

• McCain supports school vouchers. 

• Supports sending federal dollars directly to local schools, cutting back on
red tape and saving administrative costs.

• McCain wants to place parents and children at the center of the education
process and empower parents by greatly expanding the ability of parents to
choose among schools for their children. 

Editor’s note: We found it difficult to pinpoint the position of John McCain on
education from his campaign website and decided to publish an unedited copy of
his position directly from his website.

Excellence, Choice, and Competition 
in American Education 

John McCain believes American education must be worthy of the promise we make
to our children and ourselves. He understands that we are a nation committed to
equal opportunity, and there is no equal opportunity without equal access to
excellent education.

Public education should be defined as one in which our public support for a
child's education follows that child into the school the parent chooses. The
school is charged with the responsibility of educating the child, and must have
the resources and management authority to deliver on that responsibility. They
must also report to the parents and the public on their progress.

The deplorable status of preparation for our children, particularly in
comparison with the rest of the industrialized world, does not allow us the
luxury of eliminating options in our educational repertoire. John McCain will
fight for the ability of all students to have access to all schools of
demonstrated excellence, including their own homes.

No Child Left Behind has focused our attention on the realities of how students
perform against a common standard. John McCain believes that we can no longer
accept low standards for some students and high standards for others. In this
age of honest reporting, we finally see what is happening to students who were
previously invisible. While that is progress all its own, it compels us to seek
and find solutions to the dismal facts before us.

John McCain believes our schools can and should compete to be the most
innovative, flexible and student-centered - not safe havens for the uninspired
and unaccountable. He believes we should let them compete for the most
effective, character-building teachers, hire them, and reward them.

If a school will not change, the students should be able to change schools.
John McCain believes parents should be empowered with school choice to send
their children to the school that can best educate them just as many members of
Congress do with their own children. He finds it beyond hypocritical that many
of those who would refuse to allow public school parents to choose their
child's school would never agree to force their own children into a school that
did not work or was unsafe. They can make another choice. John McCain believes
that is a fundamental and essential right we should honor for all parents.

As president, John McCain will pursue reforms that address the underlying
cultural problems in our education system - a system that still seeks to avoid
genuine accountability and responsibility for producing well-educated
children.

John McCain will place parents and children at the center of the education
process, empowering parents by greatly expanding the ability of parents to
choose among schools for their children. He believes all federal financial
support must be predicated on providing parents the ability to move their
children, and the dollars associated with them, from failing schools.





John McCain position on the Foreign Affairs:





John McCain position on Tax and Taxation:

• McCain wants to make the Bush tax cuts of 2001 and 2003 permanent, and has
proposed a few more of his own. 

• McCain supports a simplified income tax system with two rates and a generous
standard deduction.

• He wants to double the deduction for dependents to $7,000 to help those
raising families.

• McCain proposed suspending the federal gas tax during the 2008 summer.

• McCain advocates phasing out the alternative minimum tax, which threatens to
group millions of middle class taxpayers together with the wealthy taxpayers.

• He would reform estate taxation.

• McCain would forbid Internet and cell phone taxes.




John McCain position on Iran:

• He opposes unconditional diplomatic talks with Tehran and would work with
allies to stop Iran's dealings in Iraq.

• McCain is very worried about Iran acquiring a nuclear weapon and giving it to
terrorist organizations.

• He believes that Iran's nuclear proliferation is a serious risk and could
further destabilize the region.
 
• McCain would use military force to prevent Iran from developing nuclear
weapons.

• In April 2007, McCain was asked about possible U.S. military action in Iran,
“when do we send them an airmail message to Tehran?" He began his answer with a
variation on the lyrics of a well-known pop song, Barbara Ann. “You know that
old Beach Boys song, Bomb Iran?" He then sang "Bomb bomb bomb, bomb bomb Iran".
 The song became a video sensation on the Internet.

• In July 2008, McCain was asked for his reaction to an Associated Press report
that $158 million in cigarettes had been shipped from the United States to Iran
during President Bush's years in office, despite restrictions on U.S. exports
there. "Maybe that's a way of killing them," McCain answered. Following a poke
in the back from wife Cindy, McCain clarified, "I meant that as a joke, as a
person who hasn't had a cigarette in 28 years." 

• McCain has called Obama naive for his willingness to meet with U.S. foes such
as Iran.

• In July 2008, Iran test-fired nine long- and medium-range missiles that
Iranian officials said were aimed at showing the country’s ability to counter
Israeli or American attacks.   In a prepared statement, McCain responded,
“Iran’s most recent missile tests demonstrate again the dangers it poses to its
neighbors and to the wider region, especially Israel. Ballistic missile testing
coupled with Iran’s continued refusal to cease its nuclear activities should
unite the international community in efforts to counter Iran’s dangerous
ambitions. Iran’s missile tests also demonstrate the need for effective missile
defense now and in the future, and this includes missile defense in Europe as is
planned with the Czech Republic and Poland.”  McCain also criticized Obama for
his plans to open direct diplomacy with Iran. “Working with our European and
regional allies is the best way to meet the threat posed by Iran, not
unilateral concessions that undermine multilateral diplomacy,” McCain said.

• McCain accused Obama of underestimating the threat Iran poses to the United
States and stated, "Senator Obama has declared and repeatedly reaffirmed his
intention to meet the president of Iran without any preconditions, likening it
to meetings between former American presidents and the leaders of the Soviet
Union," he said. "Such a statement betrays the depth of Senator Obama's
inexperience and reckless judgment. These are very serious deficiencies for an
American president to possess."

Obama quickly responded to McCain's attack, "And so I have made it clear for
years that the threat from Iran is grave, but what I have said is that we
should not just talk to our friends, we should be willing to engage our enemies
as well.  That is what diplomacy is all about.  The reason Iran is so much more
powerful now than it was a few years ago is because of the Bush and McCain
policy of fighting an endless war in Iraq and refusing to pursue direct
diplomacy with Iran. They are the ones who have not dealt with Iran wisely."







John McCain position on Guantanamo:

• McCain, a former POW has fought as an Arizona senator to outlaw interrogations
that might be construed as torture.

• As a senator, McCain voted NO on preserving habeus corpus for Guantanamo
detainees, an amendment that would strike the provision regarding habeas
review. The underlying bill authored trial by military commission for
violations of the law of war.

• He strongly opposes the use of interrogation methods that cause physical or
emotional suffering. 

• McCain voted NO on requiring CIA reports on detainees & interrogation
methods. Amendment to provide for congressional oversight of certain Central
Intelligence Agency programs.

• McCain has stated that he would close the prison at Guantanamo Bay and
'expedite judicial proceedings' for the remaining prisoners. 





John McCain position on Business and Labor:

• McCain wants to lower trade barriers for US companies.  Ninety-five percent of
the world's customers lie outside our borders and he says we need to be at the
table when the rules for access to those markets are written. To do so, he
thinks the U.S. should engage in multilateral, regional and bilateral efforts
to reduce barriers to trade, level the global playing field and build effective
enforcement of global trading rules. He believes these steps would also
strengthen the U.S. dollar and help to control the rising cost of living that
hurts our families. 


• McCain says he will act to make American workers more competitive. He wants
to prepare the next generation of workers by making American education worthy
of the promise we make to our children and ourselves.  We must be a nation
committed to competitiveness and opportunity. He would fight for the ability of
all students to have access to any school of demonstrated excellence. He would
place parents and children at the center of the education process, empowering
parents by greatly expanding the ability of parents to choose among schools for
their children. 

• McCain would reform the Unemployment Insurance System by depositing a portion
of each workers Unemployment Insurance Tax into a Lost Earnings Buffer Account
(LEB). If an individual becomes unemployed, the LEB may be used to cover needed
expenses, with a backstop of traditional UI if the account is exhausted before
26 weeks. Workers would have an incentive to preserve their LEB by getting back
to work quickly, and may be eligible for a re-employment bonus if they get a new
job quickly. The LEB would be portable, and upon retirement, the property of the
worker.

• McCain believes we should have a single, seamless approach to job transition
assistance. He thinks that the Unemployment Insurance System must be more
effective in helping those who have lost a job. He would modernize and
transform our current programs by consolidating redundant federal programs,
strengthening community colleges and technical training and giving displaced
workers more choices to find their way back to productive and prosperous lives.


• McCain would reform training programs to provide quick assistance to workers
seeking new skills. He would give workers access to a flexible training account
that permits them to pay for training at a community college and use leftover
funds to keep their health insurance. 

• McCain would provide special, targeted assistance for older workers. He
believes training is often inefficient for older workers and those 55 years of
age and older who have built up an LEB would be eligible for a Lost Earnings
Supplement. The supplement of up to 50 percent of their earnings loss (up to a
maximum of $10,000) for two years would be rewarded for those who find work
inside 26 weeks.




John McCain position on Same Sex Relationships:

• McCain supports same sex civil unions, but not marriage.

• He believes that the same-sex marriage issue should be decided by individual
states.




John McCain position on the Deficit:





John McCain position on Stem Cell Research:

• Supports federally funded embryonic stem cell research on existing lines of
stem cells, but not new lines.



John McCain position on Gun Control:

• McCain praised the June 2008 Supreme Court decision striking down the District
of Columbia's gun ban. “Obviously I am very pleased about that decision,” he
said. “We had filed an amicus brief with 54 other senators. So I am pleased
with that ruling." 

• He opposes holding gun manufacturers liable for crimes using a firearm and
has voted to protect gun manufacturers from such liability. He has however
supported legislation requiring gun manufacturers to include gun safety devices
such as trigger locks in product packaging.

• McCain supports assault weapons and concealed weapons and has voted
consistently against such bans or restrictions.  Most recently he opposed an
amendment to extend a ban on 19 specific firearms, and others with similar
characteristics.

• He believes that banning ammunition is just another way to undermine Second
Amendment rights. He voted against an amendment that would have banned
ammunition marketed or labeled as ‘armor-piercing.’

• McCain introduced legislation that would require an instant criminal
background check for all sales at gun shows. He supports instant criminal
background checks for gun buyers and wants them to be conducted thoroughly,
efficiently, and without infringing on the rights of law abiding citizens or
effectively blocking transactions.

• McCain supports the importation of certain types of high capacity ammunition
magazines and has voted against any limitations. 

• McCain believes in strict, mandatory penalties for criminals who use a
firearm in the commission of a crime or illegally possess a firearm. Enforcing
the current laws on the books is the best way to deter crime.




John McCain position on Marijuana Law:

• McCain opposes the legalization of marijuana.

• He opposes the use of marijuana for medical purposes and supports the
continuation of federal raids on medical marijuana patients.
When asked in April 2007 if he would end the federal raids on medical marijuana
patients he answered, "I will let states decide that issue."

• He believes that marijuana is a 'gateway drug' and leads to use of harder,
more harmful drugs.

• Concerning medical marijuana McCain stated in September of 2007, "Every
medical expert I know of, including the AMA (American Medical Association),
says that there are much more effective and much better treatments for pain
than medical marijuana...I still would not support medical marijuana because I
don't think that the preponderance of medical opinion in America agrees with
[the] assertion that it's the most effective way of treating pain."

• McCain strongly supports prison expansion initiatives to cope with the rising
number of convicted criminals, including drug related crimes.

• He strongly supports fighting the war on drugs internationally and would
advocate more money and military assistance to drug-supplying nations such as
Colombia to stop the flow of drugs into the US.  He recently commended Mexican
president Felipe Calderon for his cooperation with America in drug
prosecutions. "He's a good man, for the first time in history he extradited
drug dealers to the U.S."

• McCain supports the death penalty for drug kingpins.




John McCain position on the Minimum Wage:

• McCain has voted both for and against minimum wage bills. 




John McCain position on Civil Liberties:

• McCain has expressed concerns regarding the implementation of affirmative
action programs. 

• McCain voted YES on extending the Patriot Act's wiretap provision extending
the authority of the FBI to conduct "roving wiretaps" and access business
records.



John McCain position on Capital Punishment:

• He supports the use of the death penalty for federal crimes.

• McCain voted for the 1994 Biden crime bill that expanded the number of
capital offenses punishable by the death penalty and limited the number of
appeals.

• McCain supports the death penalty for drug kingpins.




John McCain position on China:

• McCain called China's economic boom a concern.

• He believes that the current rise of China and Russia warrant a stronger US
military.