Sen. John McCain has just won another battle – surely not his worst or most threatening one, but a very important one, nonetheless.
Many people may have forgotten – though certainly Sen. McCain hasn’t. The biggest threats in his life came when he was a Navy fighter pilot.
He nearly lost his life in 1967 when there was a terrible fire on the aircraft carrier USS Forrestal.
But his worst experience began later that year, when he was shot down on a bombing mission over Hanoi, North Vietnam. He was badly injured, and was a captive of the vicious Vietnamese Communists until 1973. He has suffered from his serious wounds ever since.
But he is a “survivor.” Retired from the Navy as a captain, he was elected to the United States House of Representatives, then to the U.S. Senate from Arizona. But his subsequent experiences have been far from “uneventful.”
He lost a bid for the Republican presidential nomination in 2000, then won nomination in 2008 – only to lose the presidency to Barack Obama.
When Sen. McCain came up for re-election to the Senate this year, he faced formidable primary opposition, but won decisively. He now will face a Democrat challenge in November.
Sen. McCain was a great member of our armed forces, and is a man of great character, patriotism and generally conservative service. He is a valuable senator who deserves commendation, appreciation and re-election.