Political Bio of the Week

This week is devoted to a lead Republican Presidential candidate, John McCain.

McCAIN, John Sidney, III, a Representative and a Senator from Arizona; born in Panama Canal Zone, August 29, 1936; attended schools in Alexandria, Va.; graduated, United States Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md. 1958, and the National War College, Washington, D.C. 1973; pilot, United States Navy 1958-1981, prisoner of war in Vietnam 1967-1973; received numerous awards, including the Silver Star, Legion of Merit, Purple Heart, and Distinguished Flying Cross; elected as a Republican in 1982 to the Ninety-eighth Congress; reelected to the Ninety-ninth Congress in 1984 and served from January 3, 1983, to January 3, 1987; elected to the United States Senate in 1986; reelected in 1992, 1998 and in 2004 for the term ending January 3, 2011; chair, Committee on Indian Affairs (One Hundred Fourth Congress; One Hundred Ninth Congress), Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation (One Hundred Fourth through One Hundred Sixth Congresses, One Hundred Seventh Congress [January 20, 2001-June 6, 2001], One Hundred Eighth Congress); unsuccessful candidate for the Republican presidential nomination in 2000.

Favors:

Banning affirmative action hiring with federal funds

Special funding for minority and women-owned businesses

Leaving gay marriage to the states

Prohibiting same sex marriage

Ten Commandments in schools

School prayer

Abstinence education

Recommending Constitutional ban on flag desecration

Health insurance for children

More tax-deductible health costs; limits on malpractice

Tax credits for those without employee health insurance

Limiting self-employment health deduction

Negotiating bulk purchases for Medicare prescription drugs

Privitize Social Security

Option to invest 20% of payroll taxes in private accounts

Roth IRA's for retirees

Using the Social Security surplus to fund tax reductions

Parents chose schools via vouchers

Education savings accounts

Death Penalty

More prisons and increased penalties

Mandatory prison terms for crimes involving firearms

Absolute right to gun ownership

Repealing existing gun restrictions; penalize criminal use

Banning lawsuits against gun manufacturers for gun violence

Removing charitable deduction since it only benefits the rich

Middle-class tax cut, expand 15% bracket

Flatter, lower and simpler taxes

Requiring super-majority to raise taxes

Eliminating the marriage penalty

Extending the tax cuts on capital gains and dividends

More help for legal immigrants when immigrating and once here

English immersion over bilingual education

Limiting welfare for immigrants

Allowing illegal aliens to participate in Social Security

Guest Worker program

Expanding free trade with anyone

Renewing fast track presidential trade authority

Patriot Act and wiretap provision

Raise military pay to avoid military draft

Closing unneeded military bases

Deploying National Missle Defense ASAP

Requiring on budget funding for Iraq, not emergency funding

Multiple restrictions on campaign finance reform

Sending in heavy wave of troops to Iraq to establish order

Strengthen Clean Air and Water Act; but not Kyoto

Targeting 100,000 hydrogen cars by 2010

Opposes:

Partial Birth Abortions

Military Base Abortions

Abortions, except rape and incest

Prohibiting job discrimination by sexual orientation

Adding sexual orientation to definition of hate crimes

Including prescription drugs under Medicare

Federal Government size & scope, including military

Replacing US troops w/ UN troops

Limiting NATO expansion to only Poland, Hungry and Czech

Allowing all necessary force in Kosovo

Reducing oil usage by 40% by 2025 (instead of 5%)