On Monday, Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards ordered American flags to be flown at half mast over all public buildings in the state in observance of the passing of United States Senator John McCain.
KLFY-TV in Lafayette reported that the governor “ordered the lowering of the flags for seven days, until McCain is buried on Sunday. On Twitter, Louisiana’s Democratic governor called the order ‘a small token of our appreciation for his life of service to this country.’”
McCain, the sitting senator from Arizona, died at 4:28 mountain standard time on Saturday, August 25, at the age of 81. He had contracted a form of brain cancer called glioblastoma.
Before serving six-terms in the upper chamber of the United States Congress, McCain spent six years as a prisoner of war after his plane was shot down over Hanoi in North Vietnam.
McCain first represented his home state of Arizona in the U.S. House of Representatives after being elected in 1982. Four years later, he was elected to replace outgoing Senator Barry Goldwater.
During his time in the Senate, McCain was known as a maverick for casting crucial votes on controversial issues such as his own party’s attempts to repeal the Affordable Care Act.
While having this maverick appeal about him, McCain’s lasting piece of legislation is the The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 that he co-sponsored with Democratic Senator Russ Feingold from Wisconsin. KJZZ-Radio in Arizona reported, “That bill is why candidates now say they approved their ads at the end of them, it also banned large corporate contributions to party committees.
Some of the law’s teeth, though, have been removed or dulled over the years, through legal challenges and Federal Election Commission decisions.”
McCain is also known for his two presidential bids. In 2000, he lost a contentious Republican primary bid to eventual nominee George W. Bush from Texas. Then, in 2008, McCain received the GOP’s nomination and lost the general election to the Democrat Senator Barack Obama from Illinois.
After McCain’s passing, his daughter and television commentator Meghan McCain posted on Twitter, “I love you forever - my beloved father.”
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TONY MARKS Associate Editor