The late Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., was a complicated man like the late Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass., his former Senate colleague. Coincidentally, they both died of brain cancer and both on the same day, Aug. 25, Kennedy nine years earlier than McCain's Saturday death.
We could spend time excoriating President Donald Trump about his lengthy and unnecessary feud with the former Navy fighter pilot and prisoner of war, or lambasting as hypocritical those on the left who had only harsh and hateful things to say about him when he ran for president in 2008 against then-candidate Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., but now praise him only because of their hatred for Trump.
But we prefer, instead, to remember McCain for his expertise at what he trained for and what was in his blood (with his father and grandfather as four-star Navy admirals) - the military.
Harry J. Kazianis, director of defense studies at the Center for the National Interest, enumerated some of those stances in a Fox News tribute.
The Arizona senator, like Hillary Clinton and other senators on both sides of the aisle, voted in 2002 to authorize the use of force in Iraq. Later, he called that invasion a mistake, but he supported President George W. Bush's "surge" to help bring hostilities to a close. Many Democrats ridiculed the strategy - to increase troops in the by-then unpopular war - but it proved to do the job.
Later, when Iraq had gained a measure of control, then-President Obama decided to remove all troops from the country. McCain opposed the move but did not carry the day. The result was an eventual overrun of much of the country by the terroristic Islamic State, whose presence was not fully erased until Trump was in office.
Only three years ago, with Obama still president but not at all worried about Russia's invasion of Ukraine, McCain warned about Moscow's move and intents.
"When the bear feels wounded," he said, "she is dangerous. And if we don't stand tall against Russia now, they will keep pushing, and this will only get worse. We aren't learning from history, and I fear where this ends up. Putin's not done."
Under Obama, the U.S. didn't stand tall, and Russia was - and is - emboldened.
Lastly, in 2015, McCain also warned of the importance of a national security strategy toward Asia and, specifically, about China's increasing military activity in the South China Sea. To Kazianis, he said it "could be the flashpoint of our time."
Certainly, in the ensuing years, the area only has become more volatile.
The U.S. can be thankful for John McCain's insight on these and other matters. We hope someone as wary, as dedicated and as knowledgeable on military issues will rise to take his place.