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John McCain's Revisionist NFL History
Remember the closing months of the Democratic primary, where Sen. Hillary Clinton spun local ties just about everywhere she campaigned?
It appears that Sen. John McCain is reaching for the same playbook. However, he appears to have truly jumped the shark in search of his latest "hometown connection".
Two days ago, McCain was in Pittsburgh, where he gave an interview to KDKA-TV's Jon Delano.
A particularly striking nugget from this interview:
"When I was first interrogated and really had to give some information because of the physical pressures that were on me, I named the starting lineup -- defensive line -- of the Pittsburgh Steelers as my squadron-mates!"
Now, as it happens, I am a long-time football fan. I'm a particular fan of '60s and '70s NFL history. And, since I've been living in the Pittsburgh area for the last six years, I've grown attached to the Steelers' '70s heyday.
So, the alarm bells started ringing. I know McCain checked into the Hanoi Hilton in 1967. However, the Steelers' famed defensive line - the "Steel Curtain" of L.C. Greenwood, Mean Joe Greene, Dwight White and Ernie Holmes - was not together in 1967. In fact, not one of those players was even in Pittsburgh in 1967. Nor, for that matter, was their legendary coach, Chuck Noll.
The 1967 Steelers were one of the worst teams in the NFL, and the franchise had been largely laughable throughout its time there. It would take a true Steelers "SuperFan" to name the starting O-line from 1967 - certainly not a Navy flyboy with no Pennsylvania ties who was going around the world on missions starting in 1958.
For the record, the official Steelers NFL website lists the starting defensive linemen for the 1967 season. Ladies and gentlemen, meet Ken Kortas, Chuck Hinton, Ben McGee and Lloyd Voss. If this line had a nickname, it would've been "Lace Curtain".
Of course, McCain has told this story before. However, he usually tells it about the Green Bay Packers' offensive line, which makes a lot more chronological sense. Here's a quote from "Faith of My Fathers" (not a bad book, BTW, and handy for oppo research too):
“Once my condition had stabilized, my interrogators resumed their work. Demands for military information were accompanied by threats to terminate my medical treatment if I did not cooperate. Eventually, I gave them my ship’s name and squadron number, and confirmed that my target had been the power plant. Pressed for more useful information, I gave the names of the Green Bay Packers offensive line, and said they were members of my squadron. When asked to identify future targets, I simply recited the names of a number of North Vietnamese cities that had already been bombed.”
This does not trivialize McCain's POW status in the least. What this does is cast serious doubt on McCain's use of that status as a Presidential qualifier, as he makes up lies out of whole cloth just to incorporate his POW status into a swing-state interview. A few more holes in the fuselage of "Air Straight Talk" can't hurt, either.
Meanwhile, according to The Page, McCain is in Hudson, WI today. Oh, how I wish I could be a reporter there today.
My friends, that's pandering we can believe in. <insert Snidely Whiplash laugh and axe-murderer smile here>
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Comments (4)
While not a huge issue by any stretch, it's either blatant pandering or proof that McCain's mind is going.
July 11, 2008 11:26 AM | Reply | Permalink
Definitely not a big deal - except that it happened in Pittsburgh, where the Steelers are basically sacrosanct.
July 11, 2008 11:54 AM | Reply | Permalink
Aye, it's pandering. He doesn't want the 'Religious Right' to hear him talking about 'packers'.. :P
July 11, 2008 2:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
It's a big deal if you watch the interview, the way the reporter at KDKA is just lapping it up, what kind of idiot would he feel like if he knew it was a big lie??
I think it's bad enough the way McCain is exploiting his POW experience to get votes, but to lie about the details is disgusting. He also uses it like a big stick to beat off any criticism from absolutely anyone. Everything that was said about the MSM giving Obama a pass is true when it comes to McCain.
As a Pittsburgher I'm so glad you posted this story, Boyd, and I'm not even a Steelers fanatic, I just don't like to be lied to.
July 11, 2008 6:37 PM | Reply | Permalink
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