An appearance by the widow of Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) at the Democratic National Convention is unexpected from a political angle, but quite expected when considering the long and warm history between Joe Biden and John McCain.
In a pre-released teaser for Cindy McCain’s speech at the convention, she speaks on how unlikely it was for the Republican war hero and the Democratic congressman to become close friends. McCain served as a military aide to Biden on a trip, where the two famously later joked that McCain never carried Biden’s luggage.
‘It was a friendship that shouldn’t have worked. John, a former Navy pilot, just released from a North Vietnamese prison. Joe, a young senator from Delaware. But in the 1970s, Joe was assigned a military aide for a trip overseas.’
McCain paints a picture of close family friends, with children growing up together and a personal relationship outside the contentious world of politics. Her narration is moving and offers a new insight into the kind of politics the two men practiced at a less divisive time in history.
‘John and Joe traveled thousands of miles together. The families got to know each other, gathering for picnics in the Biden’s backyard. They would just sit and joke. It was like a comedy show sometimes to watch the two of them.’
McCain is not the first Republican to speak at the Democratic National Convention in 2020. In addition to well-known Republicans like former Gov. John Kasich, a series of former Trump voters and Republicans who have grown weary of his inept style of governing have also spoken out in recorded videos to be included at the convention.
According to The Hill:
‘Cindy McCain is just one of a number of Republicans who has appeared at the convention to boost Biden. Several appeared Monday night to endorse the former vice president, including former Ohio Gov. John Kasich, a Trump critic who said that Biden can help the country “do better than what we’ve been seeing today.”’
For a clip of McCain’s speech, see below:
Featured image screenshot via YouTube
