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| '''John Sidney McCain III''' (born ], ]) is a ] ] from the state of ] in the ]. | |||
| McCain lives with his second wife Cindy in ]. He has seven children and four grandchildren. | |||
| ==Early history== | |||
| McCain was born in the ], the son and grandson of prominent ] admirals (] and ]). He followed in their footsteps (somewhat reluctantly) and graduated from the ] in 1958. As a naval ], he was shot down over ] in 1967, and was held as a ] in ] for five-and-a-half years. When his captors discovered he was the son and grandson of admirals, he was offered a chance to go home, but he refused to break the military code that POWs are released in the order that they are captured. | |||
| He was finally released from captivity in 1973, having survived the injuries he received when he was shot down, the beatings from an angry crowd and his captors, a year of torture, and two years of ]. Once released, his POW injuries prevented him from receiving a sea command, so in 1977, he became a Navy's liaison to the Senate. He was discharged from the Navy in ], on the day he watched his father buried next to his grandfather, in ]. During his military career he received a ], a ], the ], the ], and a ]. | |||
| ==Political career == | |||
| McCain was elected as an ] representative to the ] in 1982. In 1985, upon ]'s retirement, he was elected to the ], partially financed by ], who had also contributed to his House campaigns. | |||
| In 1997, ] named him as one of the "25 Most Influential People in America." His best-selling book, ''Faith of my Fathers'' (1999, ISBN 0375501916), helped propel his presidential run. McCain ran in the ], winning in ], ], ], ], ] and ]. He lost the nomination to the well-funded party establishment campaign of ]. | |||
| One of McCain's main passions in his national political career has been the topic of ] (in spite of voting against such measures initially). Since 1992, McCain has repeatedly tried to pass legislation regulating campaign financing, finally achieve a major victory in ]. That year, ] passed a key campaign finance reform bill, the ], co-sponsored by Senator ] and hence also known as the McCain-Feingold bill. It was immediately challenged on ] grounds, but was narrowly upheld by the ] on ], ], in an expedited hearing and ruling. | |||
| ==Political views== | |||
| McCain doesn't fit neatly into any political wing. He is conservative on many military and social issues, but more liberal on fiscal issues. He once fought against funding the construction of a new ], saying the money should be spent on the 12,000 families of the enlisted who were on ]. He is strongly ] and equally strongly against ]. His appeal during the 2000 presidential campaign was based on his style and personal image rather than any label of ] or ]. Because of his quick temper and independence in the Senate, he is sometimes called a "maverick senator." He fights against ] spending and supports expanded legislation on ] and education. | |||
| ==External link== | |||
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