John McCain, Arizonaβs senior senator who died Saturday at age 81, loved Americaβs favorite pastimes, football and baseball, and went to bat for fans and players.
He tackled the NFLβs practice of blacking out games on local TV when tickets were not sold out, even though most NFL stadiums are taxpayer-funded. The Federal Communications Commission axed its βsports blackout ruleβ in 2015, and the NFLβs owners voted to suspend the blackout rules in the 2015 season.
McCain also hit the NFL teams for their βpaid-for patriotismβ practices β ceremonies such as salutes to soldiers and on-field American flag rollouts.
He joined Arizona Republican Sen. Jeff Flake and Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., in slapping the knuckles of NFL teams for scooping up $7 million over three years for armed-forces marketing, advertising and promotions. In 2015, the trio introduced an amendment, which passed, to the annual defense bill to end the practice. McCain urged the NFL to return those profits to charities that supported the troops, veterans and their families.
He supported the playersβ right to kneel during the national anthem.
βThatβs their right to do what they want as citizens,β McCain told TMZ Sports in September 2017 when asked about Dallas Cowboy players who took a knee, then locked arms in solidarity before playing the Arizona Cardinals.
Sen. John McCain, at Bear Down Gym in 2000, was close with elite sports figures like Luis Gonzalez and Larry Fitzgerald.
During a June 2017 Senate Intelligence Committee hearing with former FBI Director James Comey, McCain blamed his confusing, disjointed questions on his favorite baseball team: βMaybe going forward I shouldnβt stay up late watching the Diamondbacksβ night games,β McCain joked in a statement. The D-backs beat the San Diego Padres 7-4 in a game that lasted until about 1:30 a.m. Eastern time the night before.
One of the first things McCain did after being treated for brain cancer was join his wife, Cindy, and their daughter Meghan McCain in Phoenix for the Diamondbacks game on Aug. 20, 2017. The D-backs lost 8-6 to the Dodgers.
The Diamondbacksβ Luis βGonzoβ Gonzalez, whose walk-off single brought the 2001 World Series title to Arizona, was one of McCainβs close player pals. McCain said his favorite sports memory was when the Diamondbacks beat the New York Yankees in seven games to win the Series.
Gonzalez, an outfielder, three-time team MVP and five-time MLB All-Star, endorsed McCain for re-election to the Senate in 2010 and 2016. Gonzalez is now on the D-backsβ executive staff.
βI trust John McCain with our national and economic security,β Gonzalez said in a 2016 political commercial. βHeβs a fighter and thatβs the type of person you want to lead.β
Larry Fitzgerald, the Cardinals wide receiver known for sideline-edging catches, said in a 2017 Sports Illustrated tribute to McCain that the senator was an avid Cardinals fan who attended games and practices.
After the wide receiver visited McCain at his Cornville-area ranch in February 2018, Cindy McCain posted a photo of McCain, Fitzgerald and herself on Instagram and said that βFitzβ was the McCainsβ βfavoriteβ Cardinal and βa wonderful human being.β
History buff Fitzgerald traveled through Vietnam in 2013 and visited spots related to McCainβs experience, such as Truc Bach Lake and the cell where McCain was held as a POW.
βIβm not a super-political person, but I have young sons and I want them to know our nationβs history. I also want them to be proud of our country. We should be a nation of fairness and equality. We should be a country with justice for all,β Fitzgerald said in the Sports Illustrated piece.
βOne of the reasons I admire Senator McCain is that he doesnβt always just vote his party. He votes his conscience, and that can seem like a rare quality these days,β Fitzgerald said.
Fitzgerald spoke on strategic philanthropy in April 2018 at the invitation-only Sedona Forum, the McCain Instituteβs annual gathering of national and international thought leaders. McCain did not attend the forum.
βSenator John McCain will be revered and respected for as long as the United States of America has a place in this world,β Fitzgerald said in his tribute, βand his legacy will outlive us all.β
Arizona Sen. John McCain's life in photos
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This 1936 black-and-white file photo, provided by the McCain Presidential Campaign, shows Republican presidential hopeful, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., in the arms of his grandfather, John Sidney McCain, right, in the Panama Canal Zone. His father John Sidney McCain Jr. is at left.
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Vice Admiral John S. McCain, USN (center) with his son, Commander John S. McCain, Jr., on board a U.S. Navy ship (probably USS Proteus, AS-19) in Tokyo Bay, circa 2 September 1945. Admiral McCain died a few days after this photo was taken. Note Japanese submarine in background, just to left of Admiral McCain.
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John McCain as a student at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD.
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McCain Field, the U.S. Navy training base, was commissioned and named in honor of Admiral John S. McCain July 14, 1961. Standing before his plaque from left, grandson, Lt. John S. McCain III and his parents, Rear Admiral John S. McCain Jr. and Roberta Wright McCain.
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John McCain, left, stands in military dress uniform next to his father, John S. McCain, Jr., in this undated photo. Born the son and grandson of Navy Admirals, McCain was destined for a military career. He spent 20 years in the Navy, a quarter of it in a Vietnamese prisoner of war camp.
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Lieutenant John Sidney McCain III
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This photo provided by the Library of Congress shows John McCain, front right, with his squadron in 1965. McCain, a former Navy fighter pilot, was captured by the Vietnamese, tortured and imprisoned for more than five years. He was awarded the Silver Star, Bronze Star, Legion of Merit, Purple Heart, Distinguished Flying Cross Medal, Prisoner of War (POW) Medal. The Republican senator from Arizona is making his second presidential run, and knows what it's like to have fought before and lost.
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Two A-4C Skyhawk aircraft from the USS Constellation, similar to aircraft flown by Lt. John McCain, fly past the USS Kearsarge (CVS-33), 12 August 1964.
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Photo released Thursday February 24 2000, by the Vietnamese News Agency which is claimed to show the rescue 33 years ago of U.S. presidential candidate John McCain, center, from Hanoi's Truc Bach lake. McCain's navy fighter was shot down over the capital on October 26,1967.
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John McCain is administered to in a Hanoi, Vietnam hospital as a prisoner of war in the fall of 1967. McCain spent 20 years in the Navy, a quarter of it in a Vietnamese prisoner of war camp. On Oct. 26, 1967, McCain's jet was shot down over Hanoi during a bombing mission.
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This is an undated file photo of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., lying injured as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam was among 4,000 photos and documents given to a U.S. delegation by Hanoi. McCain was a U.S. pilot downed in Vietnam November 1966. Now McCain is extolling Bob Dole's virtues as a presidential candidate and popping up with increasing frequency on lists of potential running mates for the presumptive GOP nominee.
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John S. McCain III is escorted by Lt. Cmdr. Jay Coupe Jr., public relations officer, March 14, 1973, to Hanoi's Gia Lam Airport after the POW was released.
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A smiling Lt. Cdr. John S. McCain III limps down ramp for a welcome as he arrives at Clark Air Base in The Philippines, March 14, 1973 from captivity in Hanoi. (AP Photo)
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Lt. Commander John S. McCain III, a POW for over five years, waves to well wishers March 18, 1973 after arriving at Jacksonville Naval Air Station in Florida. At left is his wife, and son Doug, who is on crutches after breaking his leg in a soccer game. McCain is the son of Adm. John S. McCain Jr, who commanded the U.S. Forces in the Pacific until his retirement. (AP Photo)
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John McCain is greeted by President Richard Nixon, left, in Washington, May 25, 1973. McCain spent more than five years in a Vietnamese prisoner of war camp before he was released in March of 1973. (AP Photo/Harvey Georges)
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John McCain in an interview in 1973, shortly after his release from POW camp.
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John McCain's flight suit as shown at the Hanoi Hilton, Ho Chi Minh City.
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U.S. Navy Commander John S. McCain 3rd, a guest of the South Vietnamese government, visits the Holt orphanage in Saigon, Vietnam, on Oct. 30, 1974. The institution cares for many youngsters fathered by American G.I.s. McCain, son of the admiral who commanded U.S. forces in the Pacific at the height of the Vietnam War, was shot down over Hanoi and spent several years as a POW.
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This monument in Hanoi marks the location where a U.S. Navy flyer, Lieutenant Commander John McCain III, parachuted and was captured after being show down in 1967, shown Jan. 31, 1985. McCain was released by the Vietnamese several years later, but hundreds of U.S. servicemen are still listed as missing.
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Former California Governor Ronald Reagan, center, actor Michael Landon, second from right, and the governor's wife Nancy, third from left, greet former POWs during a reunion party in Los Angeles May 28 1978. Party featured engtertainers from film and television. At left, U.S. Navy Capt., Howard Ruttledge and his wife, Phyllis' at right is U.S. Navy Commander John McCain. (AP Photo/Brich)
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U.S. Congressman John McCain visits the Tucson Citizen on Oct. 13, 1983.
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Rep. John McCain fields questions from the press while his wife, Cindy looks on on July 8, 1983.
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John McCain, left, campaigning in Tucson for U.S. Senate on Feb. 1, 1986.
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Senate candidate, John McCain makes a speech off the back of a train to kick-off his campaign at the Tucson Amtrak station on February 1, 1986.
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John McCain, left and George Bush at a Republican rally fund raiser. Photo taken February 21, 1986.
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Jack Kemp, left and John McCain at a fundraiser luncheon on September 22, 1986.
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The late U.S. Rep. Morris K. Udall, center, flanked by U.S. Sen. Dennis DeConcini (left) and Sen. John McCain, during a press conference about the proposed Phoenix-area Cliff Dam in 1987.
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Sen. John S. McCain III (R-Ariz.), at podium, joined a group of GOP congressmen, left to right, Jim Kolbe, Jay Rhodes and Jon Kyl, in asking Gov. Evan Mecham to resign his office, Jan. 16, 1988, at the state capital in Phoenix. The GOP group said the legal and political turmoil surrounding Mecham has virtually paralyzed the state
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Sen. John McCain of Arizona makes a point during his address to the Republican National Convention Monday, August 16, 1988 in New Orleans. Monday was the opening day of the convention at the Superdome.
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Senator John McCain, center, (R-AZ) speaking with a soldier from the Panamanian Defense Forces Sunday, May 7, 1989 in Panama City after he voted. McCain is a member of the official observer delegation sent from Washington for the country's presidential election. The Opposition has continued to accuse the government of electoral fraud. With them is an unidentified U.S. Embassy official.
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Gwendolyn van Paasschen, second from right, an economics aide to Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., sits with her attorney Plato Cacheris, right, during hearings before the Senate Ethics Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. on Nov. 20, 1990. Also attending the hearings, from bottom to top, are John McCain, his attorney John Dowd, Thomas Green, atorney for Sen. Donald Riegle, D-Mich, and Donald Riegle.
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Sens. John Glenn D-Ohio, left, Dennis DeConccini, D-Ariz., and John McCain, R-Ariz., right, arrive at the Senate Ethics committee hearing room Nov.15, 1990 on Capitol Hill. Five senators are to face charges that they took part in alleged influence peddling to help former savings and loan owner Charles H. Keating, Jr.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz, is hugged by former North Vietnam Col.Bui Tin on Capital Hill Thursday, Nov. 7,1991 after a hearing of the Senate Select Committee on POW and MIA affairs. Tin oversaw a military prison operation called the "Hanoi Hilton" where McCain was held prisoner during the Vietnam War.
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Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), chairman of the Senate Select Committee on POW-MIA Affairs, left, gives Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), a member of the committee, his pilot's helmet on Capitol Hill in Washington, Dec. 2, 1992. Kerry gave the helmet to McCain after retrieving it from the Vietnamese on a recent trip to Hanoi to investigate the POW/MIA issue. McCain was held prisoner in Vietnam during the war.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. grabs his neck while joking about a red light on the podium during a microphone test at the Republican National Convention Thursday, August 20, 1992 in Houston. President George Bush accepts his nomination for four more years in Thursday night's convention finale, the starting gate for a 75- days sprint to November against Democrat Bill Clinton amid a national yearning for change.
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President Clinton meets with Sen. John McCain, (R-Ariz.) on Tuesday, July 11, 1995 in the State Dining Room of the White House after the president announced the formalization of relations with Vietnam. McCain, a former POW in Vietnam, led the effort to the opening of relations with Vietnam.
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Sen. John McCain, wife Cindy, and family during a victory speech in 1996.
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U.S. Senator John McCain, center, on Wednesday, Nov. 13, 1996 embraces Mai Van On, the man who saved him in 1967 after his bomber was shot down over Hanoi during the Vietnam War. On pulled McCain's broken body from Hanoi's Truc Bach lake despite a jeering crowd that would sooner have let the American aviator die. Others are not identified.
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Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., right front, walks with Sen. Max Cleland, D-Ga., center, and Sen. Robert Kerry, D-Neb., during a ceremony celebrating the 15th anniversary of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington Friday, March 7, 1997. In background, from left, are: Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., and Sen. Chuck Robb, R-Va. The six senators all served in the Vietnam War.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., followed by Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D. arrive for an anti-tobacco rally on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, May 20, 1998. Halfway to what was supposed to be its fateful final vote this week, the Senate's massive tobacco bill is stalled by lawmakers' bickering.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., checks the podium for the Republican National Convention Saturday in the San Diego Convention Center as staff member Deb Gullett, and his wife, not shown except for hand, have a laugh at his expense. The convention starts Monday.
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Arizona senator John McCain laughs on March 19, 1999, as he does a phone interview for a morning radio show on the topic of boxing. McCain was interviewed in his Phoenix office, where he has an exploratory committee to run for President of the United States.
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Republican presidential candidate John McCain pauses for a quiet moment in a stairwell before entering a town hall meeting in the Burlington, Vermont City Hall on Dec. 18, 1999.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., heads a "town meeting" at VFW Post 799 in Keene, N.H. on Sept. 1, 1999.
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Republican presidential candidate John McCain speaks to students at Harvard University's JFK School of Government on December 17, 1999.
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Star News----Republican presidential hopeful U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., laughs while speaking with some of his supporters after a breakfast meeting with the Contra Costa County Republican party in San Ramon, Calif., Friday, Aug. 20, 1999. Seen on the left is McCain's wife Cindy.
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Republican presidential candidate John McCain and his wife Cindy pose with their children in this undated photo. Children are, from left: Meghan, 14; Bridget, 8; Jimmy, 11; and Jack, 13. Bridget was adopted from an orphanage in Bangladesh.
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Republican presidential hopeful Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., plays a few notes at the 26th Annual Old Time Fiddlers' Contest in Stark, N.H., on Sunday, June 27, 1999. McCain spent the day campaigning in northern New Hampshire in preparation for the nation's earliest primary.
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John McCain shares a laugh with his press secretary Todd Harris in the back of the "Straight Talk Express" after a long day of campaigning on December 18, 1999.
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Republican presidential candidate John McCain listens to a question at a town hall meeting hosted be AARP in Portsmouth, New Hampshire on 12/18/99.
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Sen. John McCain, left, with Cindy McCain, stops of El Charro Restaurant in Tucson for dinner on Nov. 22, 1999, with Congressman Jim Kolbe, lower right, and Pima County Supervisor Ann Day.
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Sen. John McCain talks about the A4B Skyhawk, a carrier-based attack bomber aboard the USS Intrepid, Tuesday, Dec. 7, 1999, in New York. McCain flew the same plane and landed on the USS Intrepid during the Vietnam War.
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Cindy McCain, left, looks across at her husband, Sen. John McCain, of Ariz., as he announces at a press conference Thursday, March 9, 2000, in Sedona, Ariz. that he is suspending his bid for the Republican presidential nomination.
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Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, Ariz., shakes the hands of voters as he enters a town hall style meeting on the Gonzaga University campus in Spokane, Wash., Wednesday morning Feb. 23, 2000. McCain, who won the Michigan and Arizona Republican presidential primaries Tuesday, is campaigning in Washington Wednesday for that state's Feb. 29, 2000 primary.
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Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, of Ariz., leans over to examine the now-bunionless feet of actress Neve Campbell as they both make guest appearances on "The Tonight Show" Wednesday, March 1, 2000, at NBC studios in Burbank, Calif.
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Repubican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, Ariz., laughs as he appears on "Imus in the Morning" from Concord, N.H., Tuesday morning Feb. 1, 2000. Voters in New Hampshire go to the polls Tuesday in New Hampshire's presidential primary.
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Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, of Ariz., listens as Rep. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., explains the possible effects of as many as 25 polling places, located predominantly in black communties, having been unexpectedly consolidated in Greenville County, Souch Carolina, as McCain's wife Cindy, sits next to them, in their Greenville, S.C., hotel room after returning from a campaign event Saturday morning Feb. 19, 2000.
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Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, of Ariz, during a town hall meeting, Holland, Mich., Jan. 10, 2000, leans on a podium with a campaign poster showing him when he was a naval aviator during the Vietnam war, where he was shot down and captured in 1967. McCain's more than five years in prison, the decisions he made there and the lessons he learned from fellow American prisoners shaped the man who went on to serve 18 years in Congress and run for president.
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Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, of Arizona, gestures following a speech Sunday, March 5, 2000, at a rally in Wilmington, Ohio, as his wife Cindy watches. McCain will be greeted with public displays of graciousness when he returns to the Capitol this week after a reform-based presidential bid that rocked the Republican establishment and used fellow lawmakers as foils.
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Republican Presidential candidates Sen. John McCain, of Arizona, left, Alan Keyes, center, and Texas Gov. George W. Bush, all try to respond to a comment by moderator Larry King, back to camera, during the Republican presidential debate sponsored by the South Carolina Business and Industry Political Education Committee, in Columbia, S.C., Tuesday, Feb. 15, 2000.
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John McCain, and his wife Cindy stand at attention during a ceremony at the airport in Hanoi, Vietman on April 25, 2000 to repatriate the remains of American soldiers who were missing in action but recently recovered. McCain was visiting as Vietnam marked the 25th anniversary of the end of the war.
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U.S. Sen. John McCain greets at crowd of nearly 3,500 people at Bear Down Gym on the UA campus on Feb. 22, 2000.
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** FILE ** In this April 26, 2000, file photo, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., tells his son Jack about his time as a Vietnam war P.O.W. as they look into a prison cell at the Hoa Lo prison, nicknamed "The Hanoi Hilton" by American prisoners. McCain was a P.O.W. from October 1967 to March 1973 and spent 3 years locked in the Hoa Lo. McCain, his wife Cindy, and son are visiting Vietnam this week as the country prepares to mark the 25th anniversary of the end of the war on April 30.
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John McCain and his wife Cindy walk along the banks of Lake Truc Bach in Hanoi, Vietman on April 26, 2000 where McCain was pulled ashore after his plane was shot down in October 1967. McCain was visiting as Vietnam marked the 25th anniversary of the end of the war.
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Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, of Arizona, and his wife Cindy hoist light sabers from the movie "Star Wars" during a victory rally Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2000, in Phoenix after McCain defeated Texas Gov. George W. Bush in both the Michigan and Arizona primaries. McCain frequently describes his campaign as that of Luke Skywalker fighting his way out of the Death Star. Supporters handed the sabers to the McCains from the audience.
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Republican presidential contender John McCain, of Ariz., gets a hug from his wife Cindy as he speaks to supporters in Charleston, S.C., Saturday, Feb. 19, 2000, after losing the South Carolina primary to George Bush.
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Republican presidential hopeful Texas Gov. George W. Bush, left, listens as Sen. John McCain, of Arizona, speaks during the Des Moines Register Republican presidential candidates debate, Saturday, Jan. 15, 2000, at the Iowa Public Television studios in Johnston, Iowa.
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Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, of Ariz., is surrounded by the press upon his arrival at the Manchester Central Fire Station Thursday afternoon, Jan. 6, 2000 in Manchester, N.H. McCain is in New Hampshire campaigning for the first in the nation presidential primary.
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Standing in front of local school children, Republican presidential hopeful John McCain, R-Ariz., addresses a town hall style meeting of New Hampshire voters at Bethany Covenant Church in Bedford, N.H., Wednesday morning, Jan. 5, 2000. McCain is in New Hampshire this week campaigning in the first presidential primary.
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In this Sept. 12, 2000, file photo, recovering from skin cancer surgery, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., right, talks with Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson, R-Texsd, on Capitol Hill during the Senate Commerce Committee on the Firestone tire recall.
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Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., right, laughs as Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., second from left, answers a reporters during a Capitol Hill news conference Thursday, June 28, 2001, to discuss the Shays-Meehan Campaign Finance Reform Bill. Rep. Zach Wamp, R-Tenn., left, and Rep. Michael Castle, R-Del., second from right look on.
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Arizona Senator John McCain is silhouetted as he speaks to Green Valley, Ariz., residents regarding the events from the last two weeks after the terrorist hijackings that have shaken the nation on September 27, 2001.
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Senator John McCain waves to crowd at BOB ballpark before he addressed the crowd prior to the Dbacks vs Brewers game on Sept. 26, 2001. McCain spoke to the crowd about America being ready for the war against terrorism.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., kicks back in his chair and places a phone call while working in his Capitol Hill office in Washington during the Senate debate of the McCain-Finegold campaign finance reform bill, Friday March 23, 2001.
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Vice Admiral Willy Moore, left, the commander of the Fifth Fleet, talks to U.S. Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Fred Thompson, R-Tenn, right, as they watch planes being launched from the deck of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, Wednesday, Jan. 9, 2002, for combat missions over Afghanistan.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., appears at a news conference on Capitol Hill Tuesday, April 9, 2002. McCain and Sen. Russell Feingold, after shepherding the biggest campaign finance measure in 25 years through Congress, joined forces again to oppose an effort this week by House Republicans to ease a tax law that requires independent ``stealth PACs'' to disclose activities to the IRS.
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President Bush walks with Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., after he announced he has reached an agreement with House leaders on a resolution giving him authority to oust Saddam Hussein, in the Rose Garden, Wednesday, Oct 2, 2002. As part of the deal with the House, Bush bent to Democratic wishes and pledged to certify to Congress before any military strike, if feasible, or within 48 hours of a U.S. attack that diplomatic and other peaceful means alone are inadequate to protect Americans from Saddam's weapons of mass destruction.
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House Minority Leader Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Sen Joeseph Lieberman, D-Conn., prepare to testify before a public hearing for the independent commission on the Sept. 11 attacks on Capitol Hill, Thursday, May 22, 2003. McCain and Lieberman who fought to create the commission urged the panel to blow the whistle on bureaucratic barriers and government failures that left the nation vulnerable to terrorism.
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US Sen John McCain and Congressman Raul Grijalva tour the border crossing at the Mariposa port of entry in Nogales, Ariz., on Friday, Mar 14, 2003, with Undersecretary of Homeland Security Asa Hutchinson to assess efforts to tighten the border and deter terrorist and radiological and weapon infiltration.
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Senator John McCain speaks to a class at the University of Arizona, Wednesday, May 28, 2003, about his experiences during the Vietnam War. The class is learning about Vietnam and The Cold War, and filled most of the time up with questions about his time spent as a POW.
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Senators Edward Kennedy, left, D-Mass, Chuck Hagel, center, R-Neb, and John McCain, right, R-Ariz, share a laugh before the start of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration hearing on Evaluating the Temporary Guest Worker Proposal on the Capitol Hill, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2004 in Washington.
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U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., pushes his wife Cindy McCain out of The Barrow Neurological Institute at St. Joe's Hospital Friday, April 16, 2004 in Phoenix. Mrs. McCain was released from the hospital after suffering a minor stroke on Monday. At right is Dr. Robert Spetzler, Mrs. McCain's doctor.
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Sen. John McCain R-Ariz., speaks at a memorial service for former Arizona Cardinals Pat Tillman in San Jose, Calif., Monday, May 3, 2004. Tillman was killed in Afghanistan on April 22.
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President Bush, center, sits down with, from left to right, Karen Hughes, former White House counselor, Florida State Rep. Bev Kilmer and Sen. John McCain R-Ariz., as they prepare to have lunch at Suzanne's Java CafC) in Fort Walton Beach, Fla. Tuesday, Aug. 10, 2004.
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Senator John McCain of Arizona speaks at Madison Square Garden during the Republican National Convention in New York, Monday, Aug. 30, 2004.
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Sen. John McCain, second from right, is joined by wife Cindy, right, and unidentified aides in his hotel suite prior to speaking before the evening session of the Republican National Convention in New York, Monday, Aug. 30, 2004.
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Arizona senator John McCain acknowledges the small crowd at Gallagher Theater on the UA campus prior to his hour long debate against Democrat Stu Starkey in 2004.
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U.S. Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.; Susan Collins, R-Maine; John McCain R- Ariz.; and Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y, from left, talk while visiting Exit Glacier near Seward Alaska Wednesday, Aug. 17, 2005, during a fact finding visit to Alaska and Canada to see the effects of global warming.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., takes part in a news conference on global warming on Capitol Hill Thursday, Feb. 10, 2005.
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President Bush, center, stops to acknowledge Sen. John McCain, R-AZ., who tried unsuccessfully to walk in unnoticed as he was late to the start of the presentation of the Commander-In-Chief's Trophy to members of the U.S. Naval Academy football team in a ceremony in Rose Garden of the White House Wednesday, April 20, 2005 in Washington.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., calls for bi-partisan support of Social Security reform as President Bush takes his Social Security reform crusade to the West, at a "Conversation on Strengthening Social Security" at the Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum in Denver, Colo., Monday, March 21, 2005. Bush wants to assure seniors that they will continue to receive their regular government checks, while he pushes for a system of private accounts which would enable younger workers to divert a portion of their payroll taxes from Social Security deductions and into stock market investments to bankroll their retirement. Joleen Mossoni, 21, a student at University of Colorado, listens at right.
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FILE - In this Jan. 25, 2006 file photo, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., left, chats with Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis. on Capitol Hill in Washington. The Supreme Court has raised a range of high-stakes possibilities that could substantially scale back the hard-won 2002 Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act, also named the McCain-Feingold law after its sponsors, and let corporations, unions and wealthy individuals pour money into elections in time for this year's congressional races, not to mention the 2012 presidential contest; a ruling is expected as early as Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2010.
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President George W. Bush has a laugh with Senator John McCain during a town hall session held at the Tucson Convention Center on March 21, 2005 in Tucson, Ariz.
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Arizona Senator John McCain addresses the crowd during a town hall meeting at Valley Presbyterian Church, 2800 S. Camino Del Sol, in Green Valley on February 20, 2006. More than a thousand people showed up to listen to and question the senator.
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Arizona Senator John McCain listens during a town hal meeting at Valley Presbyterian Church, 2800 S. Camino Del Sol, in Green Valley on February 20, 2006. More than a thousand people showed up to listen to and question the senator.
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U.S. Senator John McCain, R-Ariz., left, talks with aids as he ascends an escalator at the Ronald Regan Building after addressing the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington April 23, 2007, before officially announce his candidacy for presidency of the United States in 2008 within the week in New Hampshire.
Sen. John McCain of Arizona
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Republican presidential candidate, Sen. John McCain, Ariz., left, introduces his vice presidential running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, at a campaign stop in Washington, Pa. Saturday, Aug. 30, 2008.
Sen. John McCain of Arizona
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Presidential campaign buttons,including some show Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, are for sale by a sidewalk vendor on Monday, Nov. 3, 2008 in New York. Republican contender Sen. John McCain faces his Democratic opponent Sen. Barack Obama on Tuesday.
Sen. John McCain of Arizona
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Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, R-Airz. waves behind Weis market Office Leader Jackie Smith at the Westgate Mall in Bethlehem, Pa. on Wednesday July 23, 2008.
Sen. John McCain of Arizona
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Republican presidential candidate, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., addresses supporters at a campaign rally in Toledo, Ohio, as his daughter Meghan applauds Sunday, Oct. 19, 2008.
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Republican presidential candidate, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., talks to reporters while in flight from Atlanta to New Orleans, La., Friday, March 7, 2008. McCain showed a flash of the temper when repeatedly questioned by New York Times reporter Elisabeth Bumiller, second from right, about a conversation in 2004 with Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass.
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Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain greets voters during a campaign stop in Columbia, South Carolina, on Thursday, January 17, 2008.
Sen. John McCain of Arizona
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Republican presidential candidate John McCain and his running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, campaign before an enthusiastic crowd at Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster Pennsylvania, Tuesday, September 9, 2008.
Sen. John McCain of Arizona
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Republican presidential candidate John McCain acknowledges the crowed as he goes on stage at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minn., Thursday, Sept. 4, 2008.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., right, is joined by Gov. Sarah Palin, R-Alaska, during a rally with supporters on election night in Phoenix, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2008.
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In a May 24, 1999 file photo Senator Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., jokingly holds the Profile in Courage award lantern as if he intends to keep it, as co-winner, Senator John McCain, R-Ariz., looks on at right during ceremonies at the John F. Kennedy Library in Boston. In back row are their spouses, Victoria Kennedy, left, and Cindy McCain. Sen. Ted Kennedy has died after battling a brain tumor his family announced early Wednesday Aug. 26, 2009.
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Arizona Republican Senator John McCain considers a question from a town hall meeting regarding heath care reform, held at Oro Valley Church of the Nazarene Sept. 18, 2009.
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The Senate Armed Services ranking Republican, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., left, talks with Joint Chiefs Chairman Adm. Michael Mullen on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2009, before the start of the committee's hearing on Mullen's reappointment.
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Arizona Republican Senator John McCain is greeted by supporters and attendees of a town hall meeting regarding heath care reform, held at Oro Valley Church of the Nazarene on Sept. 18, 2009.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., left, and his wife Cindy, walk with their son Jack after he graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., Friday, May 22, 2009.
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Col. Greg Stroud commander of the 162nd Fighter Wing of the Arizona Air National Guard, Senator John McCain and Tucson Mayor Bob Walkup talk at a press conference at 162nd Fighter Wing at Tucson International Airport Nov. 24, 2009 in Tucson Ariz. McCain was hoping that Tucson will be chosen as the site to house the training for the F-35 joint strike fighter aircraft.
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Republican Senator John McCain talks with some audience members after a town hall meeting with the Saddlebrooke Republican Club on February 19, 2010.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., second from right, is joined on stage by his wife Cindy McCain, right, Todd Palin, left, and Sarah Palin at a campaign rally at the Pima County Fairgrounds in Tucson, Ariz., Friday, March 26, 2010. McCain, who is running for another term in the U.S. Senate, is joined by Palin for their first campaign rally together since losing the presidential election in 2008.
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A John McCain supporter waits in the growing crowd for the senator and Sarah Palin to take the stage during a campaign stop at the Pima County Fairgrounds on Mar. 26, 2010.
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FILE - In this July 16, 2010 file photo, Sen. John McCain, center, looks at former congressman J.D. Hayworth, right, as political newcomer Jim Deakin checks his notes at the first Arizona Senate Republican debate at KTVK Channel 3, Friday, July 16, 2010, in Phoenix. Hayworth is aiming to topple four-term Sen. John McCain, the 2008 Republican presidential nominee who has been a Washington presence for nearly 30 years.
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Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., center, flanked by the the committee's ranking Republican Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., right, and Sen. Joseph Lieberman, I-Conn., listens to testimony on Capitol Hill in Washington Thursday, Dec. 2, 2010, during the committee's hearing on the military Don't Ask Don't Tell policy.
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Senator John McCain clebrates his win as he takes the stage at the GOP election headquarters at the Hyatt in downtown Phoenix in 2010.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., third left, are joined by Cochise County Sheriff Larry Dever, right, and Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu, left, as they speak about a border security plan to fight illegal immigration and criminal activity along the Arizona-Mexico border during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Monday, April 19, 2010.
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Senator John McCain is getting an earfull, after the Town Hall meeting, from a few that stayed to talk to him one-on-one at St. Mark's United Methodist Church on August 9, 2011.
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Cindy McCain wipes away a tear as she and husband Sen. John McCain listen during the funeral service for nine-year-old mass shooting victim Christina-Taylor Green at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church in Tucson, Ariz., on Thursday Jan. 13, 2011.
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Marilyn Krausch holds up a photo she said shows Syrian rebels abusing prisoners and arguing the U.S. should stay out of the conflict as she talks to Sen. John McCain at his town hall meeting at the Tucson Interagency Fire Center, Thursday, September 5, 2013, Tucson, Ariz.
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Republican presidential candidate former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney campaigns during a town hall style meeting in Manchester, N.H., as Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz,, listens Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2012.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., left, and South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, center, attend an event in support of Republican presidential candidate former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, right, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2012, in Charleston, S.C.
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Senator John McCain having a fun time here talking to Sergio Arellano, a combat vet and wounded warrior from the war in Iraq, at the end of the forum where McCain spoke on a number of topics at the El Pueblo Regional Center. Photo taken Tuesday, October, 22, 2013.
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In this Jan. 24, 2013, file photo, then-Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton huddles with Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., on Capitol Hill in Washington. McCain and Clinton share a friendship forged in the Senate, on fact-finding trips around the globe and over vodka shots in Estonia. He's a former Republican presidential nominee. She could be the next Democratic presidential nominee. And lately, the Clintons and McCains seem to have embraced each other, offering up their families' working relationship as an example of wlkays political leaders can overcome the partisan divide.
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From left, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. sit on Capitol Hill in Washington,D.C., Tuesday, February 12, 2013, for President Barack Obama's State of the Union address during a joint session of Congress.
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Senator John McCain speaks on a number of topics at the El Pueblo Regional Center in Tucson, Ariz. on Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2013. In an interview Tuesday with radio station KFYI-AM in Phoenix, the Arizona Republican said that he's seriously giving a lot of thought to another bid for re-election.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., leaves the chamber just after President Barack Obama's choice to head the Justice Department's civil rights division failed a Senate test vote and put the confirmation of Debo Adegbile in jeopardy, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, March 5, 2014.
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Sen. John McCain gets a laugh after making a reference to the Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump during a meeting with employees at Bombardier, 1255 E Aero Park. The senator talked about a number of issues including his thoughts on ISIS, the upcoming vote on the Iranian treaty, Social Security and other topics. The photo was taken on Wednesday, August 12, 2015, in Tucson, Ariz.
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Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., bangs the gavel to start the committee's hearing to examine global challenges and US national security strategy, Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2015, on Capitol Hill in Washington.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., answers a question, with Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., looking on, after McCain formally announced his candidacy for re-election in 2016 at an Arizona Chamber of Commerce luncheon Tuesday, April 7, 2015, in Phoenix.
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In this video frame grab image from U.S. Senate Television, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., displays a photo of the body of a three year-old Syrian refugee as he urged stronger leadership from President Barack Obama on Syria, on the Senate floor, Wednesday, Sept. 9, 2015 at the Capitol in Washington. McCain stood next to an enlarged, close-up photo of Aylan Kurdi, who drowned on a voyage with his family. He said the photo has "opened the worldβs eye to this devastating crisis."
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Arizona Sen. John McCain, left, talks with Raytheon Missile Systems president Taylor Lawrence during a groundbreaking ceremony for construction of the new Aerospace Parkway south of Raytheon Missile Systems on East Hughes Access Road on Tuesday, March 31, 2015, in Tucson, Ariz. The realignment moves Hughes Access Road 2,500 feet to the south, allowing room for a second runway to be built at Tucson International Airport.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., second from right, and his wife Cindy McCain, right, greets supporters after dropping off their ballots at a polling station, Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2016, in Phoenix. The incumbent McCain is running against Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick, D-Ariz.
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Arizona Sen. John McCain speaking at the Arizona Daily Star in Tucson on Jan. 15 2016.
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US Senator John McCain, left, gets his photograph taken with Steve Barlow, middle, by George Cooley at Universal Avionics Systems Corporation after a town hall meeting at the plant. Barlow is a systems engineer and Cooley is a pilot and senior program manager. The photo was taken in Tucson, Ariz., on Thursday, March 31, 2016.
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As he greets supporters, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., is flanked by wife Cindy McCain, right, and Cheryl Flake, left, wife of Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., after being declared the winner in the Arizona Republican primary Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2016, in Phoenix. The 80-year-old McCain defeated former state Sen. Kelli Ward and two other Republicans on the ballot.
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Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., left, talks with Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass. on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2017, prior to the start of the committee's hearing: "Foreign Cyber Threats to the United States."
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., arrives in the Capitol for a vote on Tuesday, March 21, 2017 in Washington, D.C.
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Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) walks onto the Senate floor on July 26, 2017 to vote on two health care related amendments in Washington, D.C. McCain voted against a straight repeal of the Affordable Care Act.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., shakes hands with chair of the National Constitution Center's Board of Trustees, former Vice President Joe Biden after receiving the Liberty Medal in Philadelphia, Monday, Oct. 16, 2017. The honor is given annually to an individual who displays courage and conviction while striving to secure liberty for people worldwide.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., speaks after he received the Liberty Medal from the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, Monday, Oct. 16, 2017. The honor is given annually to an individual who displays courage and conviction while striving to secure liberty for people worldwide.
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Senate Armed Services committee chairman Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., right, comforts Victor Sibayan, of Chula Vista, Calif., whose son, Navy FC1(SW) Carlos Sibayan, 23, died in the USS Fitzgerald collision, after a hearing on recent Navy incidents, Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2017, on Capitol Hill in Washington.
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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, is surrounded by reporters as he makes his way to the floor for a vote, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Oct. 25, 2017. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
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Senate Armed Services Chairman John McCain, R-Ariz., followed at right by House Armed Services Chairman Mac Thornberry, R-Texas, makes a humorous face to reporters as he arrives to speak before a meeting of the National Defense Authorization Act conferees, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Oct. 25, 2017. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
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FILE - In this Dec. 1, 2017, file photo, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., leaves a closed-door session on Capitol Hill in Washington. McCain's office said Monday, April 16, 2018, he is in stable condition at a Phoenix hospital after intestinal surgery needed to stem an infection. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
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This Sunday, March 18, 2018 photo provided by Meghan McCain show Meghan McCain and her father U.S. Sen. John McCain in Sedona, Ariz. Meghan McCain has posted the photo on social media of her with her father, saying there's "no place I would rather be."
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Sen. John McCain with wife Cindy in a photo Tweeted on May 20, 2018. The Tweet read: "Happy birthday to my extraordinary wife @cindymccain - you make us very proud!"
