US Sen John McCain's son to join Marines: report

Reuters
Saturday, July 29, 2006; 3:30 PM

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The youngest son of U.S. Senator John McCain, a former prisoner of war in Vietnam and a vocal proponent of more American troops in Iraq, will soon report for duty in the Marine Corps, Time Magazine reported on Saturday.

Jimmy McCain, 18, will spend three months in boot camp in California this autumn and another month in specialized training.

Depending on his unit, the younger McCain could eventually wind up in Iraq where Marines have experienced heavy fighting, Time reported. Marines are also in combat in Afghanistan.

"I'm obviously very proud of my son," McCain told Time, "but also understandably a little nervous."

The U.S. military death toll in Iraq stands at 2,574, including four Marines killed on Thursday, the military said on Saturday.

more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/29/AR2006072900508.html

Well, now we know McCain is running in 2008. I just hope his son doesn't have to pay for it.

stance when he has a family member involved. Wait til little Jimmy starts sending him the real skinny on what's going down in Iraq, should he ever make it there.

I guess he and Pierce are to busy emulating Uncle Chucklenuts

He'll probably be OK. MKJ

edited to add "probably". I'm just figuring after the Pat Tillman disaster, the Marines won't want to risk a high profile fatality. But, one never knows. MKJ

Amen.

However, let's see what duty he pulls if and when he's sent to one of the hell holes.

Well, his Dad was the son and grandson of an important military figure and it didn't keep him out of POW camps for years....

because of his family background. He chose to stay with his fellow POW's. If they couldn't go, he wouldn't.

It isn't like John McCain got a cushy job in Nam because of who HIS father was...

Some kind of Old Testament, Abraham thing?

he would have any chance of getting through to his father about the reality on the ground?

goes to Iraq and sees it for the fiasco it really is and return an outspoken critic of the war. Fat chance of that happening, I know, but one could hope.

Then maybe Ann Coulter can smear him for being a girlieman.

Mz Pip
:dem:

I believe she would use the expression total fag.

Spankin ann!

helping dad do a campaign stunt? "Nervous" Senator? I somehow doubt you'll worry too much about Jimmy coming home with no legs or in a box. Spare me the drama.
I think I feel a headline coming on: "Chelsea joins the Special Forces!"

:grr:

I guess then Barb and Jenna would have to become SEALS.

It does sound like a campaign stunt. But at least he's signing up. More than I can say about the rest of the armchair patriot's kids.

Mz Pip
:dem:

my very first thought too, I doubt he will really be in harms way.

see what a patriot he is?

and poof! he's "elected"

the family does have a long tradition of military service, both McCain's father and grandfather were Admirals during WWII, and Jimmy's older brother is a middie at Annapolis, so it's probably real.

Is this for campaign effect? I mean, they could probably keep Jimmy fairly safe in the Green Zone. Or, is Jimmy his own "man?" God, I'm having a hard time calling him a man, he's just a boy!!!!!

and if she can walk miles without with a 90 lbs ruck, go for days without sleep, learn arabic, etc.... then prehaps..

This thread is showing some real ugliness.

If he gets deployed to a hot zone, will all of the people who dismissed this decision come correct? Somehow I doubt it.

DTH

twins signig up?

south for the winter.

the TRUTH! :P

warnings in Hell.

John Seery Fri Jul 28, 8:25 PM ET

"If this war is so God damn important, why aren't the Bush twins over there in
Iraq helping to fight it?"




I hear this complaint all the time in off-the-record discussions about the Iraq War. It personalizes the war. It cuts to the quick about why this war has lost all credibility.

You can argue all day with a die-hard (no pun intended) Republican about the shifting justifications for the war--the 9/11 connection; Saddam's "gathering" threat; the elusive WMD's; liberating the Iraqi people; the preemption of greater conflict; foreign policy confrontation instead of containment; fighting terrorists "over there" instead of "over here"; promoting democracy and freedom; oil; permanent military bases in the Mideast; finishing the mission whatever the hell it is--but you probably won't make any headway: Blah, blah, blah.

But if someone brings up the 24-year-old twins, Jenna and Barbara Bush, watch people squirm.

Mainstream news sources will occasionally provide updates on the Bush twins. Jenna, who was graduated from the University of Texas in May 2004, has been teaching third-graders English and Spanish at the Elsie Whitlow Stokes Community Freedom Public Charter School in the D.C. area. Barbara, a 2004 Yale graduate, works in education programming at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum in New York City. We sometimes read gossip about parties they've recently attended, along with the color of the cocktail dresses worn on that particular night. You don't, however, hear reporters and national commentators ask the above question (at least not aloud). Why?

I don't think it is an unfair or "cheap shot" question. Or impolite. We've got a war going on.
President Bush has billed this war as a noble and supremely necessary cause, rather than a war of choice. Valiant young men and women have trusted the President about the importance of the war. They have responded to his call. They have put their very lives on the line. This war has impacted a lot of families. Jenna and Barbara are able-bodied citizens well within the age of enlistment. Yet they have conspicuously not followed their father's leadership on this urgent life-and-death matter. Why the silence about the twins' not volunteering for military service?

More: http://news.yahoo.com/s/huffpost/20060729/cm_huffpost/026019

don't believe in dyin' for an unworthy cause and they really don't believe their daddy's LIES?

I personally think the young man has bought into his father's shilling about this war. He probably looks up to his father and if his father believes in the cause then it must be worth his life. Or he just really wants to be a marine.

Kids, especially male teenagers, believe in the whole "what it takes to be a man" thing. I don't know if I'm saying it right. He's bought into the whole hoo-ya culture. I'm cynical enough to make fun of him for it. A lot of people aren't.

I'm curious as to what he thinks about the situation when he's 30.

At least he's joining up. And I wouldn't vote for McCain if you paid me to. This doesn't change that. I wouldn't even vote for McCain if he ended up as the democratic nominee. I'd sit out the election before I cast a vote for him.

n/t

This sounds like nothing but presidential political posturing to me. I never thought that McCain would go so low as to not even put up a fuss about this. Yeah sure, he is upset "he seems annoyed by the interest in his son's enlistment", but do you honestly think that a potential presidential candidates son will ever step foot in Iraq? There he would at least be safe.

"McCain says his son's service won't change his position on the war; he claims it won't even affect how he feels about it. "Like every parent who has a son or daughter serving that way, you will have great concern, but you'll also have great pride," McCain says. But it will be hard to ignore. If Republicans retain control of the Senate after November's midterm elections, McCain is due to ascend to the chairmanship of the Armed Services Committee in January, a position he has long aimed for. There he will have day-to-day responsibility for the oversight of the war.

And then there's 2008. McCain already has strong national-security credentials. His son's service only strengthens his position. It will neutralize the assertions of the left that Republicans are "chicken hawks," pursuing the war for ideological reasons without any connection to the pain of it. And it will likely have a broader affect on McCain's credibility. Critics have accused McCain of pandering to the right in order to solidify his front-runner status, but the power of that argument is diminished if McCain is seen steadfastly supporting a war even as it endangers his youngest son."

Absolutely frightening to think of the direction this road is going. Mark my words, pure presidential political posturing! Sen. McCain you should be ashamed!

There's lots of remfs in the Marines too.

If he signs up for infantry I'll be somewhat surprised.

We will see him saluting Bush and Barney as they board Marine One helicopter on White House lawn.

I'm just waiting to see Jenna & Barb & Cheney's gay daughter driving a humvee through the streets of Baghdad.

http://www.concordmonitor.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060730/REPOSITORY/607300390/1013/48HOURS


The youngest son of Sen. John McCain has joined the Marine Corps and could be deployed to a war zone in a matter of months, according to a magazine report.

Jimmy McCain, 18, will begin basic training in September. He'll spend three months in boot camp and undergo a month of specialized training before being assigned to a unit.

"I'm obviously very proud of my son," the elder McCain told Timefor a story in editions going on sale tomorrow, "but also understandably a little nervous."

With 25,000 of 178,000 active duty Marines in Iraq now and 80,000 having done tours of duty there or in Afghanistan in recent years, the likelihood is high of Jimmy McCain being deployed to a war zone.

McCain's communications director, Eileen McMenamin, confirmed the Time story but said the senator would not comment further yesterday.

McCain has been an outspoken supporter of the war in Iraq and said last month during a Senate debate that withdrawing troops would "risk disaster."
Having a son serving in the war would not change his position, the senator said. McCain, a Republican, is a member of the Armed Services Committee and could become its chairman next year if Republicans retain control of the Senate.

Considered a possible presidential candidate in 2008, McCain served as a Navy pilot and was shot down over North Vietnam in 1967. He was held as a prisoner of war for more than five years.

Sen. McCain's father, Admiral John McCain Jr., commanded U.S. forces in the Pacific during Vietnam. His grandfather, Admiral John McCain Sr., served in World War II and was present at the Japanese surrender aboard the USS Missouri.

Another of Sen. McCain's seven children, Jack, 20, is a student at the U.S. Naval Academy.

Sen. McCain said Jimmy was well aware of the family's Navy background but had friends in the Corps and "he just wanted to join up.

"I don't think there's anything unusual about Jimmy," McCain said. "There are, thank God, lots of young men and women like him."

But, wait. That would require him actually being assigned to Iraq. Any chances of that happening?

If he is assigned to Iraq he will be kept safe in the Green Zone and

if he actually (accidentally) sees "combat" he will be "protected" as much as possible and

if he should accidentally be killed his father will use his death in his political campaigns.

No matter what happens his old man wins, dead or wounded hero or live marine.

Do I hate that coward john mccain.....what do you think :shrug:

i don't hate anybody based on their party affiliation or cowardice (which i don't accept that mccain is a coward)

your claims that mccain is a coward are about as "logical" as a freeper's claim that murtha is a coward

it's absurd

amazing the way the same logical inconsistencies arise in human behavior regardless of ideology

cause it aint a left/rightwing thang

it's a human thang

For months, flew tons of combat missions, is a coward? I am no fan of McCain, but he is no coward.

position. The once war hero, turning tail and running from Bush's attack in SC and then becoming his lap dog reveals a yellow streak a mile wide.
John McCain has BECOME a coward, and is now only a shell of the man imprisoned by the Vietnamese.

What's the world coming to when chicken hawks feed their children to the war machine? So when are the twins signing up?

you are accusing john mccain of being a chickenhawk?

that is beyond laughably absurd

mccain is a hawk. there is no way anybody could RATIONALLY accuse him of being a chickenhawk

he was a huge coward.

he also has grey hair

this has no relevance to this topic

cognitive dissonance. it's what's for breakfast

McCain took on the religious right in SC. I disagree about 90% with his politics and positions, but he is no coward, and I salute his son's decision to join the Marines.

DTH

Will it be the one with bullets flying by and IEDs blowing off at any moment, or will it be the one where you sit at a desk in the green zone for a few months then come back and tell the press how "we're turning the corner" over there?

how about waiting to see what actually happens before making biased predictions

and what %age marines DO see a warzone? do you have knowledge of this, or is it just assumption?

We're all Democrats here.. at least, most of us are. Naturally that is going to show in our posts.

but double standards are not

if it is rational to criticize pro-war politicians as "chickenhawks" based on their nonservice and/or children's nonservice (not that any person has the right to force an adult child to enter the military), then it is irrational not to accept/praise counterexamples

such as mccain

and his son

ya can't have it both ways. that's an unfair and hypocritical double standard

imo

Not "Don't Form an Opinion That Isn't Approved Of By Sgxnk Underground".

Maybe your bias is showing as well. I prefer mine, thanks.

to judge people by their actions

not their political parties, or their viewpoints

applying double standards to anybody is wrong. regardless of political affiliation

no rational human being could accuse mccain of being a chickenhawk

he is no more a chickenhawk than jack murtha

hint: neither is

no politician (or anybody else) can control whether or not their son/daughter enters teh military (despite some claims to the contrary) btw

i expect a democratic site to promote democratic causes... duh

i do not expect a democratic site, or a libertarian site, or a republican site, or whatever to employ ridiculous double standards where a person is judged not by their actions, but by their party affiliation and ideology

if a dem does a bad thing. that's a bad thing. if a dem does a good thing. that's a good thing

i prefer to judge by content of character, not ideology, when it comes to judging a person's ACTS.

a person's acts are completely tangential to a person's IDEOLOGY

Mostly by ignoring everything you just said and posting the way I want to, not the way you "expect".

Feel better now?

it's about logic

i prefer to analyze based on logic and evidence

if u prefer feelings and prejudice, at least i can applaud you for outing yerself and letting me know in advance not to expect logical, dispassionate analysis from you

thanks

I think you posted a rude and inconsequential response and you think I'm an illogical bigot. I'm good with that. Is that logical enough for you?

.

Now when he runs for president and progressive try (and they will) to throw criticism at him for the GOP's treatment of soldiers, not funding veterans benefits, not equipping our soldiers with what they need, etc. McCain can fire back (in an incredibly serious and angry face, might I add) "Do you honestly think I would vote for legislation that would put my son in harm's way? My son is in Iraq, I know the risks and family pain it brings first hand. Is your son or daughter there? You are beyond the pale."

I can see the post-debate chatter on the MSM now, with republican lemmings coming on the TV screaming and hollering about how the Iraq war must be right because if it wasn't McCain wouldn't be supporting it with his son on the battlefield and how liberals should be ashamed of themselves for attacking an honest American hero while his son could be killed anyday.

Right. I can see it all now.

I find it more likly that the kid wants to follow in his father, grandfathers and great grandfathers footsteps..

He favors sending thousands of Americans sons and daughters to their deaths everyday. What makes you think he gives a shit about his son if it meant it would help him become president?

C'mon. Ya gotta get a bit more cynical, man. This is politics. It's war. There are no rules, there are no prisoners.

McCain is not an honourable man. What makes you think he would act as such?

He can make his son join. The last time I checked, the son is the person who signed up.

We lambaste (and righteously so) the Republicans for being chickenhawks and declining to encourage military service for their own kids. Now when a Republican's kid joins the Marines, you're still lambasting him?

Maintain some consistency and perspective, please.

DTH

I'm what I'd consider a "moderate"...liberal on some things, not so liberal on others. However, most of those around me serving in my squadron come from backgrounds ranging from moderately conservative to very conservative. I would agree that it would be nice to see more service from those silver-spoon families in our country. But the idea that conservatives in general avoid service isn't really a truth. As far as I know, I don't know of any very liberal people in my squadron.

Progressives need to see the political potential of McCain's latest stunt and how it can effect their electoral hopes.

Maybe both his children joined simply because they wanted to? I know...it's a wild idea...

That is just weak. McCain is a lot of things, but he has always supported military service, and it's no surprise that his children honor military service as well. You are taking cynicism to an unattractive extreme.

And you are not being consistent, if you've ever criticized Republican leaders for being chickenhawks or failing to encourage their kids to join the military. McCain is a conservative with a ton of bad ideas, but he is neither a chickenhawk nor has he failed to encourage his kids to join the military. What we progressives "need" is to be intellectually consistent and give credit where it's due, your cynicism I don't think we need quite so much.

DTH

The McCain family has a LONG history of military service. For the past couple generations, the McCains in the Navy have had a "celebrity" status of sorts, being that the elder McCain was an Admiral that served in WWII. That status didn't protect John McCain from avoiding service as an A-4 pilot flying dangerous combat missions, and then getting the crap beat out of him daily for years in a RVN prison.

I seriously doubt that will change with his children's service. It's a common thing for military service to run in families. It runs in mine...my great-grandfather was an aerial observer around the time of WWI, but never made it to Europe prior to the war ending. My grandfather was enlisted airborne that participated in D-Day jumps, then went to OCS and served as an infantry platoon leader in Korea, and later went to flight school and served two tours in Vietnam as a helicopter/airplane pilot. My dad served as an Army helicopter pilot and retired as a Major, and after a stint in the Army Guard myself serving as a helicopter pilot, I transferred to the Air Force and now fly C-130s.

If my children choose the same path, it's of their own doing. I doubt his children joined the military because it would be a "campaign topic". I'm fairly sure they joined because of the very reasons why I joined.

At this point in time, with the current leadership? And with 2 wars in the Middle East and growing global unrest?

Pretty irresponsible.

So I guess I'm just really irresponsible to allow myself to continue to serve.

If he are she is 18, THEY decide to join or not.

So just because they turned 18 you're completely impotent when it comes to being able to get them NOT to march themselves off to pointless wars for profit that could likely get them killed?

You're just preaching the philosophy of the hopeless and irresponsible.

You can plead for them not to do it. However, in the end, it is their decision. Like it or not, 18 is still the age that we consider one to be a man or a woman. (Even if MOST 18 year olds today act like they are 12)

Call me extremely cynical - but watch for this image to be used over and over in his run for the Oval office.

Also I seriously doubt if daddy is gonna let either Jimmy or Jack end up in Iraq unless it's inside the green zone. The rules are different for the rich and powerful, and they generally take care of their own.

is going to be after killing people.

Amazing mccain would want that for a career move.

horror in iraq and afghanistan have military-age offspring and relatives, and HOW MANY of them are actually in service??

...that the son of an Academy graduate and brother of a midshipman is enlisting in the Marines. Legacy lines in the service are very strong and I think that this may ring of strategy rather than patriotism.

All said and done, I hope he does well in the Corps and comes back in one piece.

Semper Fi.

I believe McCains dad was a commander in the Navy when McCain was caught. Best wishes to Jimmy McCain.

McCain's dad was a four-star admiral when John McCain was flying over Vietnam. That still didn't protect him. If you've noticed, those that were "protected" were generally the children of non-military people. Those who's parents served generally won't receive too much preferential treatment in this department.

I think McCain's treatment was anything but preferential. And I'd be very surprised if McCain would stoop as low as using pictures of his son in uniform for any campaign. I've taken many a ride on a Herk. It's a damned good airplane.

i d be a shoe in for the white house if jimmy gets blown away...i want him deployed immediately, i can't wait till i get to bury him in arlington!!! mcclain crowed to fox news sean hannity this afternoon!

sad and sickening.

Weren't both McCain and his father in the Navy?

that aside, if they are a militarily inclined family, then the kid's enlistment is probably what he wanted to do, not based on his dad's politics.

We will do our best to end this conflict as quickly as possible. Thank you for your courage. As with all of our men and women in uniform, you will be in our thoughts and prayers.

Peace
- Galileo

and when they do they should have their military-aged children drafted, after all if they think that the cause is worthy enough to risk the lives of American's children they should be willing to risk their own.

He was my half brothers best friend in grade school.
They went to Phoenix Country Day private school.
I wish him well.

If you are not looking to die quickly in Iraq!

If he doesn't start flying off of carriers.