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Wednesday, September 3

Cindy McCain for First Lady

I was reading a thread in a Christian forum today (on FaithWriters) regarding the upcoming Presidential election. I was shocked at a certain girl’s extremely mean-spirited and ill-informed opinions. One of the nasty things she had to say about John McCain (along with that he is an atheist, which he definitely is not and other such things) is this, “McCain cheated on his wife [my note: meaning ex-wife and btw, ex-wife is promoting and presumably voting for John] and asked her for a divorce so he can marry a barbie doll. (my source came from wikipedia if anyone is interested)”. Needless to say, this incensed me greatly and I found I had to respond. The following was my response.

As a person from Phoenix, I can assure you I am proud of and admire this “Barbie doll” very much. It would be great if the rest of us would put our money, and our actions, where our mouths are. Yes, she is an heiress, but her father grew up poor, worked hard and created his wealth. He too was a war hero, serving in WWII and being shot down multiple times. It seems as though the McCain family actually lives the Scripture Luke 12:48, “To whom much is given, much is expected.” Yes this post is very long, but informative should you choose to read it. This info was verified through Snopes.

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There was an article recently in the Wall Street Journal on Cindy McCain, John’s wife. Most people only ever see an attractive woman standing beside John. It may be surprising to them how talented and involved with world problems she is. This is a summary of that article. She graduated from Southern Cal and was a special-needs teacher.

After her Dad died she became involved with his beer distributing firm and is now the chairwoman. Sales have doubled since she has taken over from her father.

They have a marriage prenuptial agreement, her assets remain separate.

She is involved around the world clearing land mines – travels to these countries on a detonation team and serves on their board.

They have a 19 year old son serving in Iraq, and another son in the Naval Academy, a daughter recently graduated from Columbia University, an adopted daughter in high school, and a son who is the finance guy at the beer firm.

They raised their kids in Phoenix, rather than D.C and he commuted.

In 1991, Mrs. McCain came across a girl in an orphanage in Bangladesh. Mother Teresa implored Mrs. McCain to take the baby with a severe cleft palate. She did so without first telling her husband. The couple adopted the girl who has had a dozen operations to repair her cleft palate and other medical problems.

They have a Family Foundation for children’s causes.

She’s active with “Halo Trust” – to clear land mines, provide water and food in war ravaged and developing countries.

She will join an overseas mission of “Operation Smile”, a charity for corrective surgery on children’s faces. She has had two back surgeries and became addicted to pain killers. She talks openly about it which she says is part of the recovery process.

Personally, I’m not surprised the media is so quiet about her attributes. They have tried to discredit John McCain because of his wife’s wealth. It looks as if she knows how to put money and time to use in many good causes. What a novel thought to have such a fine person as the “First Spouse”. She sounds more capable than Hillary or Obama. If John McCain gets elected, we would really get two for the price of one. A person with business and international experience.


Further…


Election 2008: Cindy Hensley McCain has been disparaged as a trophy wife, a Barbie, an heiress with fancy purses, even the Paris Hilton of politics. But there's more to the picture than meets the eye.

Yes, Mrs. McCain is the perfectly coifed blonde standing dutifully behind the senator during his speeches. And yes, she wears stylish clothing and carries a Prada purse. And it's true she doesn't say much. But feminist critics who write her off as a 'stand-by-your-man' shrinking violet are selling her short. In many ways, Cindy McCain stacks up sturdier than Hillary Clinton or Michelle Obama. And she'd make a more impressive first lady.

Mrs. McCain: More than meets the eye.

While Obama's wife has been hating America, complaining about the war and undermining our troops serving in Afghanistan, McCain's wife has been worrying about her sons who actually are fighting or planning to fight in the war on terror. One, in fact, was until a few months ago deployed in Iraq during some of the worst violence.

You don't hear the McCain's talk about it, but their 19-year-old Marine, Jimmy, is preparing for his second tour of duty. Their 21-year-old son, Jack, is poised to graduate from Annapolis and also could join the Marines as a second lieutenant. The couple made the decision not to draw attention to their sons out of respect for other families with sons and daughters in harm's way.

Cindy also says she doesn't want to risk falling apart on the campaign trail talking about Jimmy who was so young when he enlisted she had to sign consent forms for his medical tests before he could report for duty and potentially upsetting parents of soldiers who are serving or have been killed.

The McCain's want to make sure their boys get no special treatment. Same goes for their five other children, including a daughter they adopted from Bangladesh . During a visit to Mother Teresa's orphanage there, Cindy noticed a dying baby. The orphanage could not provide the medical care needed to save her life. So she brought the child home to America for the surgery she desperately needed. The baby is now their healthy, 16-year-old daughter, Bridget.

Though all seven McCain children including two Sen. McCain adopted from his first marriage are supportive of their father, they prefer their privacy to the glare of the campaign trail. Another daughter, Meghan, 23, helps him behind the scenes.

Cindy McCain not only cherishes her children, but also her country, which in an election year filled with America-bashing, is a refreshing novelty. She seethed when she heard Michelle Obama's unpatriotic remarks that she only recently grew proud of America . 'I am very proud of my country,' Mrs. McCain asserted.

She also may be tougher than the other women in the race. While Hillary thinks she's come under sniper fire on mission trips abroad, Cindy has actually seen violence. She witnessed a boy get blown up by a mine in Kuwait during a trip with an international group that removes land mines from war-torn countries.

Mrs. McCain also is a hands-on philanthropist. She sits on the board of Operation Smile, which arranges for plastic surgeons to fix cleft palates and other birth defects. She also has helped organize relief missions to Micronesia .

During a scuba-diving vacation to the islands, Mrs. McCain took a to a local hospital to have a cut treated. She was shocked, and saddened, by what she saw. 'They opened the door to the OR, where the supplies were, and there were two cats and a whole bunch of rats climbing out of the sterile supplies,' she recalled. 'They had no X-ray machine, no beds. To me, it was devastating because it was a U.S. trust territory.' As soon as she returned home, she arranged for medical equipment and teams of doctors to be sent to treat the island children.

Michelle Obama may contribute to CARE, which fights global poverty and works to empower poor women. Cindy sits on its board.

While the Democrat women talk about helping the poor and needy, Cindy McCain actually rolls up her sleeves and does it. Who's the out-of-touch elitist?

6 comments:

Tracy said...

Dear Readers,

I welcome your comments on this post, even if they disagree with my opinion. However, for comments to be published, I do have a couple of requirements.

~ First - This is a Christian blog, so all comments must be kept clean.

~ Second - All anonymous comments will be rejected because I believe if you care enough to leave a passionate response, you should care enough to leave your name.

I rejected a comment moments ago because of the second requirement. The comment was long, appeared to be well thought out, passionate and yes, it challenged my post. That is ok. But it was anonymous. I put my name (or identity) to the blogs I post as well as the comments I make and I expect the same. This person made it clear that they were not a fan of the McCains, and brought up many issues from their past, some true, some not (I don't believe this person was lying, just misinformed) and stated they were definately voting for Obama. That's great, but it means little if they are not willing to identify themselves.

I believe the person who left this comment is a Christian because it was NOT vile, hateful or filled with profanity. It was passionate and I commend this person for that. I realize that even many Christians believe that Obama is the Chosen One, I simply am not one of them. But as Americans, we have the freedom, the right, to disagree with one another and hold on dearly to our own beliefs.

As for whether McCain or Obama is the better Christian, well, I'll leave that for the Lord to determine. My only response here is that I cannot and will not support anyone who ridiculously responds to the abortion question, by stating that is above his pay grade. Commenting on the senseless murder of more than 40 million innocent, unborn lives shouldn't be above anyones pay grade.

LauraLee Shaw said...

Tracy, I appreciate you writing this. Political subjects can definitely be conflictual. I think the heart behind your post is that slander should not be tolerated from Christians, no matter which side you're on. If it's not fact, don't say it. It is unfortunate that this person on Faithwriters did so, but I hear it all over regarding both sides. I'm glad you spoke up. You "dared to tell the truth." (wink) It's good to hear some of the stuff you won't hear on the media. Brave post, girl, and may you be blessed with responses! ;)

gail said...

i appreciate you writing this info about cindy mccain. i have been watching the convention and watch fox news, but i haven't heard much about cindy. having a special needs son myself, i'm endeared to her that she was a special needs teacher and seeing her hold the palin's baby last nite showed that she has a genuine love for these children.

thank you for combatting the lies that surround politics. its so hard to know what to believe. i hadn't had a great opinion of john mccain during the primaries, but i'm learning about his character and strength.

God bless, gail

Josh said...

Tracy,

Thank you for sharing your heart and information regarding John McCain's wife. I personally do not delve very deep into politics, so I tend to not say too much, because I don't want to make uninformed comments or accusations.

I think the point you are trying to make here is good. Christian or not, none of us should blurt out accusations without first researching and confirming facts to backup our arguments. If in fact you aren't sure if something is true, then you should clearly state that it is an opinion and not the factual truth.

I learned a lot from this posting, and I appreciate you shedding some light on one of the potential First Ladies. May the Lord guide this election year.

Tracy said...

Dear Readers,

Previously I mentioned a comment I didn’t publish because it was anonymous. The person who posted it returned to my blog and re-commented with their identity. I will post the not one, but two comments that have been left by this individual, as I said I would. I’d like to reiterate that this person and I do not see things the same way, but that’s ok.

It’s obvious we both hold specific issues dear to us, and those issues are among the reasons that we each have decided to support the candidate we have. I commend Remo for clinging to what is important to him. I’m not sure why an affair nearly 30 years ago and a prescription drug addiction nearly 15 years ago is so important to him, but clearly it is. I care more for the ongoing murder of millions or unborn children – and even more horrific, voting against the Born Alive Infant Protection Act giving medical care to a child born alive after a botched abortion, but that’s just me.

Remo also believes John McCain hates Christians because he sees Pat Robertson and the late Jerry Falwell on the extreme right. I’m not sure that even Jerry or Pat would disagree with that and most Christians I know also believe that to be true. (And I’m not sure, but I think both Pat and Jerry would be against abortion and withholding medical care from a baby born alive after a botched abortion.)

The sources that he cites are the Phoenix New Times and the New York Times. The Phoenix New Times is an extremely liberal publication (not newspaper) that focuses mostly on lascivious entertainment. It has attacked any type of conservative thoughts/acts/persons at any time they could and don’t even try to hide the fact that they are rabidly liberal. The New York Times is a far more respected newspaper, but it too is quite liberal and the news reported therein tends to be slanted that way.

I have to admit, I did chuckle in reading that Remo’s response to disliking a guy who will reach out to liberals, is by voting for an extreme liberal. That’ll teach ‘em! ;)

Remo, I wholly respect your passion for your beliefs. I’m happy to share your thoughts here. Thank you for re-commenting and identifying yourself. I am a passionate patriot and love the USA completely. No, we’re not perfect, but I’m so grateful for the many freedoms we enjoy and take for granted here. Not the least of which is freedom of speech, which we both have the opportunity to express (and even debate) freely. I sincerely do wish you the best.

Tracy said...

Dear Readers,

As I said I would, I did publish the comments by "Remo". However, after doing so, I discovered that "Remo" was using a profile that is not available and isn't shared publicly. That is the same thing as anonymous. Soooo, these comments have been deleted. I have left my response up because it addresses the items "Remo" so passionately cared about.

"Remo", I'm sorry, but if you're unwilling to follow the rules, you're not permitted to participate in my blog. I'll not engage in silly and childish games with you. Henceforth, any comments I receive from you will be rejected immediately without being read first. My blog, my rules. Best of luck to you.