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The New York Times is raising new questions regarding John McCain's health and fitness to serve, noting that while unanswered health questions remain on all four presidential and vice-presidential candidates, McCain's missing health details are of greatest concern given his age and history of cancer. A 72-year-old presidential candidate with a history of malignant melanoma, an infamously unstable temper, and a murky psychiatric history which may include Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder owing to his war experiences, McCain has designated Sarah Palin, an inexperienced dilettante with zero background in national or international affairs, to be his backup in case of incapacity or death. If elected, McCain would be the oldest and perhaps unhealthiest incoming president in American history, backed up by our least experienced vice-president ever. Thus far, however, the media and the public have been granted only severely limited access to McCain's medical and psychiatric records. Efforts are underway, however, to press McCain for full disclosure of his medical records including psychiatric records as a matter of the public's right to know.
The Real McCain and Brave New Films recently launched a campaign to press for full disclosure of McCain's medical records, circulating a video and petition which at time of this writing has been signed by more than 59,000 people including more than 2800 medical doctors. Meanwhile, top Democrats including senators Claire McCaskill of Missouri, Harry Reid of Nevada, and Charles Schumer of New York have repeated calls for McCain to fully disclose his medical records (see Huffington Post, ABC News, Columbia Journalism Review, Open Left). These efforts deserve our full support, and Democratic leaders such McCaskill, Reid, and Schumer who courageously defy the unspoken "hands off" policy on McCain's age and health deserve congratulations.
While McCain's age and physical health are legitimate long-term concerns particularly given Sarah Palin's unreadiness to take over as president, his mental health is a matter of immediate and ongoing concern. Of particular concern is the matter of McCain's infamous anger-management problem, such as when he reacted to disagreement on immigration reform from fellow Republican senator John Cornyn of Texas by screaming, "F*ck you!"; when he called fellow Republican senator Pete Domenici of New Mexico an "a**hole"; and when he called fellow Republican senator Charles Grassley of Iowa a "f*cking jerk." Once in a 1987 meeting at the height of Central American tensions, according to fellow Republican senator Thad Cochran of Mississippi, McCain reached across the table and physically assaulted a Nicaraguan representative, seizing him by his shirt collar. "The thought of his being president sends a cold chill down my spine...," Cochran later said when endorsing Mitt Romney for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination, "...He is erratic. He is hotheaded. He loses his temper and he worries me."
Readers are encouraged to sign the petition for full disclosure of McCain's medical records, to press Democratic leaders including their own senators and representatives to raise the issue on the campaign trail, and even to press McCain himself by e-mail (john_mccain@mccain.senate.gov, info@johnmccain.com).
Voters have the right to know if their presidential candidates are fit to serve.
Mark C. Eades
http://www.mceades.com
