John Sidney McCain, 3d

John Sidney McCain, 3d 1936-, U.S. politician, b. Panama Canal Zone. A much decorated navy veteran, he was born into a career naval family and attended the U.S. Naval Academy, graduating in 1958. He became a pilot and during the Vietnam War was shot down over Hanoi (1967) and captured; he was released in 1973. Retiring as a highly decorated captain in 1981, he was elected (1982) as a Republican to the U.S. House of Representatives from Arizona and served two terms. In 1986 he first won election to the U.S. Senate. A personally appealing leader with generally conservative views, he is noted for his bluff honesty, quick wit, and outspoken manner. McCain has been particularly active in attempting to forge a bipartisan coalition for campaign-finance reform and, in 2005, for banning cruel and inhuman treatment of any prisoner in U.S. custody. He has chaired the Senate committee on Indian affairs (1995-97, 2005-7) and on commerce, science, and transportation (1995-2001, 2003-5). McCain was an unsuccessful candidate for the 2000 Republican presidential nomination, losing in the primaries to George W. Bush . In 2007-8, however, he mounted a successful campaign for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination. He chose the conservative Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate, but they lost to Democrats Barack Obama and Joe Biden . McCain has written several books on history's great leaders, e.g., Hard Call (2007).

Bibliography: See his memoirs, Faith of My Fathers (2000) and Worth the Fighting For (2002); E. Drew, Citizen McCain (2002); P. Alexander, Man of the People (2002).