PAYING
MY RESPECTS TO JOHN McCAIN
By
Stephen
G. Patten
In
my favorite photo of John McCain he is dressed in his navy white uniform,
standing on two crutches, and leaning forward purposely to make sure the person
to whom he is speaking gets his point loud and clear. That person is President Richard Nixon who
appears half amused by what this energetic and forceful young officer is saying
to him but unsure enough to be cautiously leaning back from the verbal barrage
coming his way courtesy of the U.S. Navy.
Perhaps
Lieutenant Commander McCain is just thanking President Nixon, for the photo is
from 1973 shortly after the Nixon Administration negotiated the Paris Peace
Accords on the Vietnam War that led to the release of 591 Americans in
Operation Homecoming who had been held prisoner by the Vietnamese communists. For John McCain that meant an end to 5 ½
years of torture and abuse in the infamous prison the Americans incarcerated
there dubbed the “Hanoi Hilton” and a return home to America.
Whatever
McCain was saying to the president, it obviously was heartfelt and something
this former prisoner-of-war wanted the man responsible for his liberation to
understand.
A
Military Hero in the Political Arena
The
forward leaning, self-assured posture of John McCain in that photo foretold an
extraordinary career that had already established him as a war hero and would
take him, later a retired navy captain,
to pinnacles of power as a two-term congressman, six-term senator, and
presidential nominee for the Republican Party in 2008. That he did not achieve the highest office in
the land he lost to Barack Obama did not diminish his status. Revered for his physical courage in war and
respected for his diligence and expertise in the halls of Congress, especially
regarding national security issues, John McCain was a towering figure of
authority and strength to millions of Americans.
No
more so than to us Vietnam War Veterans. He stood tall in the face of adversity that is
war, as all of us in the military hoped we could as well. He bitterly attacked the weakness of American
political policies during the Vietnam War that led to the abandonment of our
allies in Indochina – South Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos - allowing the
communists to prevail in all three countries.
That abandonment was - and still is - a stain on the honor of America, a
shame of betrayal of our friends in time of war he and so many others of us painfully
felt.
From
this came his commitment in his political life to a strong defense for America,
an unwavering support for the U.S. military and its men and women, and
faithfulness to our allies in the worldwide struggle against oppression and
terrorism, particularly in his role as Chairman of the U.S. Senate Armed
Services Committee, a job he relished. He
carried this message for years on his indefatigable travels around the globe,
from lonely military outposts on the front lines to the palaces and parliaments
of world leaders in their capitals.
Honoring
the Man
John
McCain’s life of service weighed heavily on my mind as I flew from my home in
Los Angeles to Washington, D.C. to pay tribute to the man I and so many others
admired. During the flight I walked up and down the aisles, as is my custom on
airplane trips, and spotted a lady wearing a cap that read Sgt. Marine Badass. This 87-year-old named Lorry had served in
the Marine Corps during the Korean War and was on her way to a convention in
Washington of women who had served in the military. We exchanged salutes and our Marine Corps
motto, Semper Fi. John McCain would have
loved her.
In
Washington I waited in line with many other well-wishers at the Capitol to pay
my respects to the Senator lying in state in the Capitol Rotunda. During the few hours before we were allowed
in I chatted with those around me. Among
them were a career Coast Guard officer and his wife. And there was a tall, retired navy officer
who she said had served for 21 years before retiring, a Hispanic lady from
Orlando, and another lady with multiple bracelets on her wrists from upstate
New York. All very nice people who just
wanted like me to pay their respects to a patriot.
Before
getting in line I had walked over across the street to the Russell Senate
Office Building. I stopped by the office
of John McCain’s fellow senator and close friend, Lindsey Graham from South
Carolina. I left my card with the
receptionist and asked her to thank the senator for his service, as a way of
showing my appreciation for the steadfast and loving support he always lent to
his now fallen comrade.
And
then to John McCain’s office overlooking the Capitol grounds where I expressed
my concern for his staff members there and signed the visitors’ book. The polite young men behind the desks in his
office seemed grateful that I stopped by.
Lying
in State
As
we filed down into the Capitol grounds when they started to let us in I met
seven gentlemen originally from Korea, all dressed in suits and American flag
ties who had fought in Vietnam in South Korean units sent to Vietnam to support
the American war effort there. I told
them my battalion in Vietnam was stationed right next to a South Korean
battalion. We all had our picture taken
together and I exchanged business cards with one of them, who told me he was a
tae kwon do martial arts master now living in New Jersey.
Nearing
the Rotunda as our line moved forward, I talked with two recent graduates of
the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis in uniform.
Both ladies told me they were now in medical school and I thought about
the great navy doctors who looked after us Marines when I served in the U.S. and
overseas.
Shortly
thereafter I followed our procession into the Rotunda and the flag-draped
coffin of the man we wished to honor. I
said a prayer, saluted John McCain, and walked out the other side from where we
had come in and onto a line to sign the condolence books set up to write a
message to this family. There I
reminisced with an army veteran, a retired lawyer from Indianapolis who had
also served in Vietnam.
Outside
the Capitol a Russian journalist interviewed me, asking why I was there. To honor
the man, I responded. In professional
courtesy to me as a fellow journalist, this gentleman, Dmitry, later sent me a
copy of the article for his news agency, Sputnik, which he had written. It was very well done.
I
spent the evening at the home of my dear friends, Dave Hatcher, and his lovely
wife, Khun Vasana, along with their wonderful children, their son, Donnie, and
their daughter, Vanessa, and her husband, Scott. Dave, a West Point graduate and Vietnam
veteran, and I had been CBS News reporters in Bangkok following the Vietnam
War. My wife, Pattie, and I have been
blessed with the friendship and love of the Hatcher family ever since.
Going
Home
The
next day I went to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and watched as Mrs. McCain
laid a wreath. We all applauded as she
slowly left the Memorial on her way with the hearse carrying her husband’s body
to the Washington National Cathedral for the formal funeral ceremonies. I then paid tribute to the three comrades in
arms of Pattie and me whose names are emblazoned on the Memorial Wall. A very courteous and solicitous volunteer, Steve,
etched the three names on paper pressed against the Wall and gave them to me.
I
had a flight back to Los Angeles that evening, so I returned to my hotel,
checked out, and prepared to head for the Metro subway to take me to Dulles
Airport. About ready to walk out of the
hotel, I saw a stunning blonde lady who stopped me in my tracks. I finally realized it was Mrs. Mitt Romney
and then saw her husband standing with her in a group of five or six people. I approached them, gently touched the
governor’s arm and thanked him for his service and saluted him. He was very gracious, thanked me, and, as I was
leaving, several in his group, seeing the Marine Corps cover (hat) I was
wearing, thanked me for my service.
That
was very kind, but I reflected later that while many of us have served, few of
us can match the 60-year career of devotion to duty and country that John
McCain, the man I and so many others came to honor, gave to America.
Thank
you, John McCain. Godspeed. Go Navy!!!!
_______________________________
Steve
is editor of Lee & Grant International that reports on national security issues
and the War on Terror. He was a captain
in the U.S. Marine Corps during the Vietnam War. You can contact Steve at: ppmntpatti@aol.com
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