McCain’s bio video from www.johnmccain.com.
This is not quite parallel to the video I posted of Barack Obama. Obama’s is a straight bio piece (not “straight” in that it is unbiased/lacks the emotion of this one but because it is a chronology of his life). McCain’s is less a chronology of his life and more a testament to his character.
Obviously, if you watch this, you can see that it highlight’s McCain’s military service, especially his noble deeds as a prisoner, particularly in choosing not to be released when accepting release would have been help up by the Viet Cong as a political move: “They gave him a chance to come home, and he knew the damage that would be done should he accept something like that. His character came through in spade and he said, ‘no way.’”
The film opens with an interview from when he was a POW in Vietnam, still with his arm in a cast, lying on his back in a hospital bed. The appeal is clearly to emotion, especially for those who have served in the military, but also for anyone who values the sacrifice soldiers make in serving.
The interview fades into the title, “John McCain: Courageous Service; Experienced Leadership; Bold Solutions.” The focus lands primarily on the “Courageous Service,” right from the start, but the narrator, who sounds rich, warm, and familiar, practically whispers a gruff voice over soft music that sounds a little triumphant:
“What is it that defines a great leader? Is it his courage? Is it his courage to do the difficult and not just the easy things? Is it the courage to fight? To fight to survive? Faith certainly plays a role. Faith in God. Faith in your fathers. Faith in your friends and band of brothers. Is it that maverick spirit — a little rebellious streak? What readies a man to lead this nation? Is it his principles? The willingness to stand up and fight for his convictions? Is it his life experience? Most certainly it’s a matter of the heart. The heart to have humility. The heart to never surrender.”
Count the buzz words: faith, maverick, experience, heart
“Faith” is the most interesting one to me because it seems to be wedged in there a bit unnaturally. If a freshman composition student turned in this opening in an essay, I would say s/he needed to work on a transition to move more smoothly from the question to “faith” or possibly change the order. “Faith” does not seem to be the most obvious answer to “what makes a great leader?” Of course, the reason “faith” leads off is because the McCain campaign needed to shore up the religious base that the Republicans typically count on. Nothing wrong with appealing to your intended audience. Similarly, the image of McCain walking with Reagan is an appeal. Reagan appears later, as well, shaking hands with McCain. This video was released in April, after McCain had been called the “presumptive nominee,” and showing Reagan seems to be an assurance to skeptical conservatives that McCain loves the hero of the modern conservative movement and is, in fact, in line with the conservative agenda.
The narration ends with “The heart to never surrender,” a transition to McCain telling the story of his near-death experience in the attack on the USS Forrestall. He’s talking about “his friends” in the attack, and the number of men who died “to save the ship” (commentary – is it worth human life to save a ship? Is the ship supposed to be a metaphor for the country? McCain actually misses an opportunity to highlight what service members know amongst themselves – they were fighting to save each other. The unity of a “band of brothers” is a common and effective emotional appeal that could have stood as a metaphor for McCain’s love for country in his current service, fighting for all Americans. Perhaps the appeal is present, but it is fairly subtle).
Another POW speaks on McCain’s behalf and mentions “dedication,” telling of McCain’s spirit to get up and continue the fight just two days later. “He is that committed, that dedicated, not to war, not to battle, but to doing his duty.” This is an appeal to pride, of course, but it seems also to attempt to frame McCain not as a war monger, as the left often portrays him, but as someone who will do what is necessary when it is necessary for “the good of the nation.” To me, this is the first indication that the audience may be broader than the Republican base.
There is something very important in the story of when he was shot down. He says, “our target was the power generating plant in the city of Hanoi.” This is important information for the opposition, which is likely to have ill judgment of military actions in Vietnam. It is important to know that the target was not peasants or any people. This was a tactical strike far from the horrors of the innocent Vietnamese killed in the war. This may be McCain anticipating the objections of the left, again, framing him as a warmonger associated with the very unpopular war with more than its fair share of atrocities.
This is emotional, but he tells the story without a hint of tremble in his voice – cool under pressure, it seems.
Col. Bud Day, a fellow POW, then tells of the mangled state McCain was in when he was delivered to his care at the “Hanoi Hilton.” Despite his injuries, he says, “John McCain had no intention of dying.” This is a testament to the strength of resolve (commentary – people who die in battle probably just don’t want to live as much as John McCain did).
There is the story of the “gun guard” who helps him, shows compassion, and reveals himself as a Christian. This is, again, an emotional appeal to faith.
Try not to watch the “candid” moment in which McCain talks Cindy about the soldier whose bracelet he wears. It’s a canned scene and does not do justice to the emotion of the video or the soldier. Cindy asks, “and he’s passed away?” That really should have been edited out. It sounds too scripted, and comes off as exploitative, using the death of a soldier for political purposes under the guise of a conversation/interview hybrid. This sort of thing is done often in politics, but this one is pulled off poorly, though it is no worse than other such appeals that are done better. McCain uses it to suggest that the soldier dies in vain if the war is treated as a failure or mistake. Cindy adds, “Our sons are serving and will serve, and I just think we need a Commander in Chief who understands that.” More emotion, but also a jab at the “cut and run” Democrats who, it appears, accept defeat in Iraq. McCain, as this video is set on showing, does not accept defeat. He does not “pack it in.” When the Forrestall was hit, he got right back up and joined another crew to fly more missions. When he was left for dead in a POW camp, he didn’t give up.
Then, of course, this video would be incomplete without the standard “struggle again Islamic Extremism.” And he closes with a humble note to contrast the admitted ego of the claim that he is the best qualified to lead the fight, saying that he is honored to have been given the opportunity to serve, even as a “regular Joe,” finishing “5th from the bottom” of his class at the Naval Academy. Compare that with the “elitist” accomplishments of Obama.
