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John McCain has received my vote in every election he has been on the Arizona ballot-except this past primary. Yes, I even voted for him against Bush in the 2000 primary because he was a straight shooter whose ideas and goals seemed more in concert with those of the Constitution of the United States of America.

Unfortunately, the John McCain of 2000 no longer exists. In the past eight years he has dropped from being one of the best senators to perhaps (as evidenced by his abysmal voting record) the worst. Although bills he sponsored had high-sounding titles, applications of those bills have been deplorable. Perhaps the worst was "Campaign Finance Reform," which has done little to stem influence peddling by lobbyists. Another was the defeated "Immigration Reform" bill that didn't pass even though it could have been rephrased to alleviate the present immigration muddle.

John McCain also failed to support the newest GI Bill, perhaps the most significant piece of legislation since 9/11. His lack of support is a slap in the face of every serviceman and makes the Senator's continual claim that he supports the troops appear to be a hollow, bombastic lie.

The root cause of the difference between the John McCain of 2000 and 2008 is "age." The man (eight years younger than this writer) appears at times to be verging on dementia. He has called for "victory" in Iraq without defining what his idea of "victory" is. Clearly, the United States cannot win a political "victory" against the three major competing factions. We "won" that war when we captured and killed Saddam. We will "win" the war on terror when we capture and/or kill bin Ladenwho is clearly not in Iraq.

Although John McCain benefits from Medicare, he "fights" against medical care for children, who are the future of this countryeven though his personal "hero" and perhaps the greatest Republican who ever walked on this earth, Teddy Roosevelt, was the first major politician to propose universal health care.

For me, a presidential race is not about personality. If Obama and McCain both sent me an invitation to a barbecue held at the same time, I would go to John's. John and I share much in common: Age, Irish ancestry, Vietnam air warriors-I would even talk to John about the time I met and was immensely impressed by his father. We could even talk about how it hurts to get up in the morning or the multiple afflictions brought on by age.

As John's good friend Joe Biden has repeatedly said, John McCain deserves respect for what he endured-but that was over thirty-five years ago and John McCain is not even the same man he was at the beginning of this century. Our old nemesis, Age, has caught up with us, diminishing our eyesight, our hearing, the breath from our lungs, even the thoughts in our heads.

Learn more about this author, Earl Mcgill.
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