Opinion: Maverick McCain's Last Mission

Senator John McCain presented himself as a man ready for another mission. Now, it is up to the American people what that mission will be.

CHESAPEAKE, Va. (Catholic Online) - "Thank you all very much. Tonight, I have a privilege given few Americans -- the privilege of accepting our party's nomination for President of the United States. And I accept it with gratitude, humility and confidence. In my life, no success has come without a good fight, and this nomination wasn't any different. That's a tribute to the candidates who opposed me and their supporters. They're leaders of great ability, who love our country, and wished to lead it to better days. Their support is an honor I won't forget."

With these words of tribute, John S. McCain began his last mission. Whether it ends at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue or not, it clearly has all the makings of a mission that truly matters. That is mostly because the man who is pursuing it has spent his entire life in service and simply orients himself toward the next mission. It seems to be in his blood. And, as that speech last night indicated, he really is a "maverick". He does not seem to concern himself with whether he "hits it out of the park", he simply says what he believes and does what he thinks is right.

All day long the pundit class was busily dissecting the words and performance of Senator McCain's choice for running mate, Governor Sarah Palin, the evening before when she made history by accepting the nomination of her party as the first Republican woman chosen for the office. Even those who could not stand anything she said - and the smaller group who did not even have the decency to pretend to be objective in their analysis - had to begrudgingly admit, she gave an extraordinary speech. She contended with those who had spent the days between her selection and her acceptance savaging her accomplishments, her family, her integrity and her positions on the issues while still managing to show competence, conviction and all kinds of courage.

So, the supporters of the Republican ticket, as well as its antagonists, almost made common cause Thursday. They decided to spend their hours on talk radio and participating in television talking head panels "advising" the head of the ticket, John McCain, on what he had to say and how he had to appear. They seemed to be speaking out of a similar "talking head thesaurus", referring to what Governor Palin had delivered the night before as "red meat". Apparently they think that the thousands gathered in St. Paul and perhaps the almost 38 million who watched her historic address are hungry animals. Frankly, it was offensive. Worse yet was their unsolicited advice. It differed, depending upon whether the one offering it considered themselves "to the left" or "to the right" in this age of meaningless political terms, but it was equally vacuous.

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I suggest that many people who watched the speeches are like me, tired of the labels and truly ready for change. The only real question is whether the change offered will lead us toward building a culture of life and civilization of love, to use two wonderful terms initiated by the late Servant of God John Paul II, or farther away from it. For example, the radio pundit with the largest audience in history, Rush Limbaugh, advised John McCain to drop his regular references to bi-partisanship. The candidate did not listen. Others suggested that he abandon some of his most deeply held convictions, such as his belief in the right to life, in favor of appealing to what they maintain is "the center". He did not listen. Rather, on Thursday evening, the last night of the Republican nominating convention, the nominee delivered a measured, low key, John McCain type of speech. It was solid, sincere and certainly not flashy. Given its manner of delivery it did not elicit the kind of raucous response which his Vice Presidential nominee had evoked just the evening before. However, he did not seem to care. He appeared to be a man aware of the destiny of the moment. A man on his last mission, called as he has been so many times in his rather admirable career, to respond because it is his duty, and duty is what truly matters to John McCain.

The early part of the evening was given to two friends, Senator Lindsey Graham and former Secretary and Governor Tom Ridge. They praised their friend for his heroism and extolled his accomplishments. The speeches were not the best delivered but that did not seem to matter at all. They were sincere. Then, his wife Cindy had her turn. Appearing on stage with the seven McCain children, she won the heart of the crowd and went on to deliver an impressive speech introducing herself as a potential future first lady, and revealing things that I, and most of America, probably did not know about her. Finally, she reiterated her husband's reasons for choosing Sarah Palin and her concurrence. She presented John McCain as a man of true integrity and a solid leader who can be trusted in a time which demanded such a man in the White House. The message of all three was that character is proven and John McCain possessed it.

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Then, the moment soon arrived for the Republican Nominee to speak, after one of many short films dedicated to further presenting the character of the man. I must admit that Senator McCain's commitment to visiting his former captors in Vietnam and working for reconciliation stood out in a manner it has not done for me in the past. It impressed me. He arrived on a platform which was not elevated above the assembled crowd but at the same level. He gave a speech in which he laid out nothing new. He has made the same positions clear throughout the course of the primary campaign. He underscored that he is committed to building a "culture of life". By using the phrase he signaled to those listening what he clearly affirmed at the Civil Forum hosted weeks earlier by Rev. Rick Warren. John McCain is dedicated to respecting the first and most fundamental right, the right to life. He insists correctly that that right attaches from the moment of conception. He has acknowledged that he will govern that way. This is the hallmark of his campaign and it is clearly shared by his running mate who has lived it. It is also the fundamental distinction between the two candidates now running for the Presidency.

He reiterated his support for parental choice in education, even more clearly articulating it for people like me for whom it is a critically important position: "Education is the civil rights issue of this century. Equal access to public education has been gained. But what is the value of access to a failing school? We need to shake up failed school bureaucracies with competition, empower parents with choice, remove barriers to qualified instructors, attract and reward good teachers, and help bad teachers find another line of work. When a public school fails to meet its obligations to students, parents deserve a choice in the education of their children. And I intend to give it to them. Some may choose a better public school. Some may choose a private one. Many will choose a charter school. But they will have that choice and their children will have that opportunity. Senator Obama wants our schools to answer to unions and entrenched bureaucracies. I want schools to answer to parents and students. And when I'm President, they will."

He made clear that he is committed to ending the Iraqi involvement through securing what he calls a "victory". In substance, I do not believe that his position is all that different from that articulated by his opponent, at least the most recent position articulated by Senator Obama. On this point, let me be clear, I disagreed with the initial foray into Iraq. I agreed with Senator Obama's in his opposition to a "pre-emptive" war. However, the issue has, in my opinion, now become moot. The only real question is how to proceed with justice toward the Iraqi's who have suffered so greatly and dedication to our noble troops who have served so bravely. With the choice of Senator Biden, who supported the initial foray into Iraq, Senator Obama has all but admitted that on this issue, it is not about the past but the future. He also recently admitted that the controversial "troop surge", supported by Senator McCain, has borne fruit. On some other issues of importance to me as a whole life/pro-life Catholic, such as my opposition to the death penalty, both candidates are wrong because they both support it.

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As is obvious from the steam being vented by some radio pundits "on the right" this morning, McCain did not pass the litmus test of the so called "economic conservatives" in his Party with this speech. In that he endeared himself to those who like me believe that there is a proper role for government in reaching out to those in need. To one of those pundits who now has an audience almost rivaling Rush Limbaugh's, Glenn Beck, these lines from the speech were simply unacceptable: "For employees in industries undergoing a shake-up, McCain proposed changes to the unemployment system to focus on job retraining and a program that would pay additional wages to workers who lose their jobs and temporarily take lower-paying ones." The insinuation in his diatribe this morning was that Senator McCain was some sort of closeted "socialist". Where, as to me, and many voters like me, he simply showed that he understands that there can be a proper role for good governance when it respects the need for both subsidiarity, an ordering principle which says that governance is best at the closest level first and solidarity, an acknowledgement that we are "our brothers (and sisters) keeper".

During this short speech, John McCain also laid out a sampling of his energy proposals and tax policies, which certainly mark a distinction with his opponent. He offered a tone of civility to his opponent with these words: "We'll go at it, you know that's the nature of this business, and there are big differences between us, but you have my respect and my admiration. Despite our differences, much more unites us than divides us. We're both fellow Americans and that's an association that means more to me than any other." And he further acknowledged the failures of his own Republican Party saying, "We were elected to change Washington, and we let Washington change us. We lost the trust of the American people when some Republicans gave in to the temptations of corruption."
The "Maverick" did not bring the house down Thursday evening. He did not follow the directions of the pundits, "right" or "left". He simply stayed true to the positions he believes in and he gave a solid speech. Senator John McCain presented himself as a man ready for another mission. Now, it is up to the American people what that mission will be.

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