John McCain, you, sir, are no Eisenhower

Dwight David Eisenhower may have graduated only 61st in class of 164 when he left West Point in 1911, but it did not adversely affect his performance as a soldier, a general, or a president. Throughout his career Ike faced his challenges with candor and truthfulness.  He knew the American people.

This was evident in his Presidential Farewell Address delivered January 17, 1961:

In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist. We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes.

Ike knew the obvious reasons that nations engaged in combat - the struggle over ideology, political destiny, and the myth of natural, racial, or religious superiority. He also understood that profiteering, petty jealousies, century old conflicts, and the struggle for natural resources all entered into the calculations of the architects of war.

John McCain graduated from the Naval Academy, 894 out of a class of 899. He not only performed miserably in his academic pursuits, but as the years went by he failed to understand the nature of war and the nature of the American people. 

Examine a speech that John McCain delivered as recently as April 11, 2008 on the war in Iraq. Thousands of words long, he rambles on about terrorists, the divisions in the Muslim world, and Al Qaeda. Nowhere in the speech does he drill down and acknowledge why these partisans fight. Nowhere does he drill down and explain why we fight. Only the homilies and the flag are there.

Unlike Eisenhower, who spoke truth to both power and the people, McCain tragically provides bromides from Richard Nixon's poisonous Vietnam cabinet:

However it ends, the war in Iraq will have a profound influence on the future of the Middle East, global stability, and the security of the United States, which will remain, for the foreseeable future, directly affected by events in that dangerous part of the world. The war is part of a broader struggle in the Arab and Muslim world, the struggle between violent extremists and the forces of modernity and moderation.

This is a contest of ideas and values as much as it is one of bullets and bombs. We must gain the active support of modernizers across the Muslim world, who want to share in the benefits of the global system and its economic success, and who aspire to the political freedom that is, I truly believe, the natural desire of the human heart.

It sounds good and it says nothing. Throughout history forces of modernity and moderation were confronted by extremists - but war is not inevitable. Just ask those who are struggling for a fair and just America today.

Perhaps it is the tragedy of his years of imprisonment in North Vietnam; perhaps it was his isolation when he returned to the United States. No matter what the reason, John McCain has learned nothing from Vietnam or from the American people.

Finally, in a rather ironic gesture, McCain, who recently opposed extending a GI Bill to this generation of soldiers, invoked the name of General George Marshall, architect of the Marshall Plan which rebuilt Europe after World War II:

George Marshall, whose long, selfless service to our country was of inestimable value in some of the most consequential moments of the last century. As we celebrate this year the 60th anniversary of the Marshall Plan...

If you had asked General Marshall to name the other important legislative work that honored America's military victory in World War II, undoubtedly he would have named the GI Bill.

 

Comments

[Jess Wundrun]

When McCain mentions those who "who want to share in the benefits of the global system and its economic success" he's not talking about your average citizen in the middle east, because the 'economic success' of the 'global system' is only paying out for those at the very top of the multinational corporatocracy, and the Saudi Royal family who have been aided and abetted by the IMF and the World Bank.

[Ron Legro]

Especially ironic but utterly in character: McCain is amply quoted in the 2005 documentary film, "Why We Fight," and in essence he backs up and amplifies Eisenhower's warning. And yet three years later, everything he's saying contradicts that.

[antpoppa]

John McCain is Orr, the apple-cheeked, "simple-minded gnome." Yossarian's tent mate in a book called 'Catch 22' by Joseph Heller.Much of McCain's time is taken up by pointless circular arguments generally designed to obfuscate any attempt toward his true motive. Like Orr, McCain had a propensity toward crashing his plane after bombing runs. If the Vietnamese hadn't caught him the last time, he may have paddled to Sweden.

[Anonymous]

I truly think that you are quite a remarkable man. Your blog of June 18th, on McCain was quite insightful and well worded. Perhaps you might send a copy of it to the Obama camp. Enjoy your reading your blogs .. always something there of interest.

[antpoppa]

http://www.vietnamveteransagainstjohnmccain.com/cin_hacker_2.htm

Hey Paul
John McCain has more combat awards than Dwight Eisenhower, and as many or more than Audey Murphy!
All amassed in less than a day in combat. Give this hero his due.
Not only was he for the war while serving with the navy but he had the vision to be against the war while serving with the Vietnamese after capture.
He remains the first Veteran to be awarded by both sides governments of an ongoing conflict!!

[Compassionate Badger]

Anon--

No one is saying that John McCain should not be viewed as a war hero in America. However, being a war hero does not mean that one should have a free path to the Presidency of the United States.

We need a leader who understands history as well as war; who understands the necessity for peace; who understands the importance of providing for our service men and women.

That leader is NOT Senator McCain--he has proven it time and again.

first of all john mccain voted down the new GI Bill because he wanted to change it to reward longer terms of service with more benefits.

Secondly to those who think that our kind of economy benefits only massive corporations and their owners, have you looked around recently? Sure the owners of massive corporations make massive amounts of money compared to the rest of us but people in this country who are under the povery line make more money in a week than the vast majoirty of the world does in a year, so to say that "'economic success' of the 'global system' is only paying out for those at the very top of the multinational corporatocracy" is absurd.

And thirdly John McCains service does play a large role in why i support him. Not so much because he served or because he is highly decorated but rather because his story reveals his character. He was tortured and then offered the chance to go home, but refused to go until everyone else could as well. This reveals a strength of character and resolve that most of us would be lucky to have half of and these qualities are highly important to have in the role of President.