By Sara Epstein, LLB

A Life of Leadership

John Sidney McCain III truly understood what it took to defend a nation through both military and public service. In his sixty years of service, McCain fought to uphold those principles he held dear and effectuated great strides across multiple fronts, including Defense, National Security and Veterans Services; Human Rights and Democracy Promotion; Immigration Reform; Government Reform; and Campaign Finance Reform. Truly, John McCain served the United States of America faithfully until the end and his impact will never be forgotten.

Defense, National Security and Veterans Services

Senator McCain dedicated his life to bolstering America’s national defense and caring for America’s service members. As Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Chairman McCain pioneered the passage of a bipartisan budget agreement to eliminate the budget caps on defense spending. Under his leadership, the committee furthered and achieved many great feats including identifying billions of taxpayer dollars in inefficient spending at the Department of Defense and thereafter passed legislation curtailing unnecessary spending and reinvesting savings to ensure and maintain America’s military capabilities.

A veteran himself, Senator John McCain fought relentlessly to provide veterans with the care they deserve for their service to their country. McCain worked to better veteran’s health care, combat veteran suicide, support veterans in easing the transition to civilian life, care for disabled veterans, and honour the fallen among them.

Experiencing more than five years as a POW, Senator McCain spent his life once freed to insure no man would experience such torture again. These years spent at the hands of his Vietcong tormentors had instilled in McCain a lifelong aversion to torture practices and extreme interrogation methods. Perhaps, this is best exemplified with his championing of the Detainee Treatment Act (2005). This seminal piece of legislation sought to shine the spotlight of justice – as enshrined in the 8^th Amendment to the US Constitution regarding “cruel and unusual” punishment most pertinently – upon prisoners detained by the Bush Administration. Notwithstanding the fears of a grieving nation after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the seeming necessity of Guantanamo Bay, and a sitting President drawn from his own Republican party, Senator McCain placed human dignity above fear and morality over politics, and was indispensable in the Detainee Treatment Act becoming law.

A Warrior for Human Rights, Dignity, Freedom and Democracy

An indefatigable champion of democracy and human rights, McCain served as Chairman of the International Republican Institute for 15 years. During that time, Senator McCain worked tirelessly to drive forward support for democratic societies and provide a voice for the oppressed.

Having served in Vietnam and having felt the pain and suffering of both Americans and Vietnamese, Senator McCain committed his full support and effort in aiding both Americans and Vietnamese to heal wounds rendered in the aftermath. McCain sponsored and introduced many legislative initiatives purposed to protect both children of Vietnamese women and American men born amidst the conflict who were often abandoned or abused by helping them immigrate to the United States; and adult children of Vietnamese internees by offering them refugee status.

Senator McCain further challenged many regimes across the globe that failed to maintain those notions of liberty and democracy for which McCain was a warrior and defender. From the Ukraine, to Cambodia, to Iran, wherever the potential flames of democracy and freedom flickered – even ever so slightly – Senator McCain never failed to try and kindle that flickering flame amongst the tumultuous winds of suppression, into a beacon of hope for the world to see. This is best put by McCain himself in his most recent memoir “The Restless Wave”: “The right to life and liberty, to be governed by consent and ruled by laws, to have equal justice and protection of property, these values are the core of our national identity. And it is fidelity to them—not ethnicity or religion, culture or class—that makes one an American. To accept the abolition or abridgement of those rights in other societies should be no less false to Americans than their abridgment in our own society.”

Oppressed people from every corner of the globe have thanks to give to Senator McCain for giving voices to the voiceless as the battle between dictatorships and democracies reconvenes.

When the civilian populace of the Rakhine State were subject to the ethnic-cleansing of the Burmese military, McCain immediately introduced legislation to sanction the Burmese economy and restrict the freedom of movement for Burmese officials complicit in human rights abuses. In the 1990’s, as the Kosovo War waged furiously and as the Serbian genocide of the Albanian people continued, McCain put aside partisan blinders and crossed the aisle to rally support for the Clinton Administration’s intervention in the conflict via NATO. From his vote to endorse the NATO bombing campaign against Serbian/Yugoslav forces to a litany of media appearances and contributions to support intervention efforts, McCain broke the limits and presumptions upon his role as a US Senator to become one of the faces of American interventionism.

Pre-empting the Trump Administration’s actions, and shaming the inactivity of the lame-duck Obama Administration, Senator McCain alongside his long-time ally, friend and partner in crime Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina called for the arming of Ukrainian resistance groups and railing against the ineffectual measures against Russia for its illegal intervention: “Providing Ukrainians with the ability to defend themselves would impose a far greater cost on Putin than he has paid thus far.”

In a similar vein, McCain proved to be one of the most zealous and vocal advocates for pre-emptive military action against the increasingly militant Iran. A corollary of his support for Israel, commitment to the national security interests of the US and the spreading of democracy to the world at large, one would imagine. Perhaps most famously and infamously, the Senator replied to a question from an audience member – “How many times do we have to prove that these people are blowing up people now, nevermind if they get a nuclear weapon, when do we send ’em an airmail message to Tehran?” – by bursting into song. He began by quipping “[t]hat old, eh, that old Beach Boys song, Bomb Iran,” before auditioning his vocals to the audience with “Bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb, anyway.”

It might even be said that whilst Senator McCain was alive and serving in the Senate that not one dictator had a sound night’s sleep…

Israel’s Greatest Champion and Defender

Senator McCain, an Arizona Republican and American Patriot at heart, could well be claimed as an honorary Jew following his years of defence, love and affection of the Jewish people and our eternal homeland of Israel without distinction. This is best put by McCain himself, “I’m a student of history and anybody who is familiar with the history of the Jewish people and with the Zionist idea can’t help but admire those who established the Jewish homeland. I think it’s remarkable that Zionism has been in the middle of wars and great trials and it has held fast to the ideals of democracy and social justice and human rights.”

McCain, Lieberman & the Jewish People

Before the pages of this article turn to the McCain and Israel story, one must look to the tremendous rapport fostered between McCain and the Jewish people. There are numerous anecdotes and moments which encapsulate this relationship which I shall of course mention. However, perhaps the paragon of this affection is the long-time friendship of Messrs Graham, McCain and Lieberman – a trio who travelled the globe braving new challenges in foreign policy wherever they arose.

In fact, Lieberman – a former Senator for Connecticut and Vice-Presidential candidate on the Gore/Lieberman presidential ticket – gave one of the eulogies at McCain’s funeral. Lieberman recalled how McCain would observe Judaism with Lieberman, be it McCain accompanying Lieberman on Shabbat walks wherever they would be or his dubbing of a Sabbath meal “Shalom Shabbat.” Indeed, Lieberman quipped that McCain would definitely be “deriving pleasure from the fact that his funeral is on a Saturday and I had to walk here.” Their mutual admiration for one another extended so far as for McCain to ask Lieberman to be his running mate in 2008. Unfortunately, this friendship and chance for a more a united America was thwarted by the plagues of partisanship, and it was not to be.

The story does not end here however; McCain still had his real feelings about Lieberman, the Jews and their practices to reveal… The scene was an Israeli Embassy Event to honour the storied legacy of Lieberman as he prepared to retire, and McCain was engaged to speak at the event. And so the truth came out. McCain announced his desire to convert to Judaism in a way only he could “I’ve had for so many years had to put up with the bulls**t [referring to Kosher food], I might as well convert.” That was tip of the iceberg, next on the hit-list was Shabbat elevators – “whose point he never quite got: “Pushing all those buttons — and nothing!” (Times of Israel) For McCain then, the real value to be taken from the night was not Lieberman’s legacy, rather it was the meal itself; McCain mused “Why in every f**king kosher menu do we have to have salmon? I’d like to have a round of applause tonight because we don’t have salmon.” (Jerusalem Post) Lieberman was only too happy to be joined in faith by McCain but bemoaned the fact that McCain had not had to encounter a mohel prior to entering into the covenant.

McCain and Israel: Foreign Policy

On a more serious note, Israelis, Zionists and Jews alike cannot quantify the dedication and service of Senator McCain to defending the fledgling Jewish State – a debt of love, we can never repay. Indeed, within hours of McCain’s passing, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu mourned the late Senator, and issued a personal statement on behalf of himself, and the Jewish people to the Arizona Senator:

“I am deeply saddened by the passing of John McCain, a great American patriot and a great supporter of Israel. I will always treasure the constant friendship he showed to the people of Israel and to me personally. His support for Israel never wavered. It sprang from his belief in democracy and freedom. The State of Israel salutes John McCain.”

Israelis from all persuasions of race, religion and political ideology came together to express their gratitude for a man who might as well of been a Member of the Knesset following everything he did for Israel through his years of service.

Perhaps the most touching of tributes made, was one by Natan Sharansky – a man who bore congruent scars of internment and cruelty as the late Senator. Sharansky had been a refusenik in the former Soviet Union where he had been brutally imprisoned in several prisons over the course of nine long years. To the chagrin of many Western leaders, Sharansky refused to be a good for bartering by the USSR. To further incense these already exasperated leaders, Sharansky then consented to being part of a larger prison swap two years later. Many struggled to comprehend this apparent volte-force. However, Senator McCain understood Sharansky’s action since they replicated his own when the North Vietnamese offered to free him on their terms whilst he was a POW. Similarly, McCain refused. These two principled prisoners soon met after Sharansky’s release in 1986. In a moment of mutuality, McCain said to Sharansky – “I understand why you refused to be released on the USSR’s terms two years ago.” What is there to understand you may wonder. Sharansky himself explains:

“He knew how such a request would have been presented by the Soviet authorities, how they would have used it to claim that I, their critic, accepted their authority to control my fate. He knew how it would have been used to break the spirit of other dissidents. McCain understood my reasons because he himself had made the same choice. When the North Vietnamese government offered to release him ahead of other POWs, he declined, despite the atrocious conditions in which he was held. Some values, he knew, stood above survival and comfort.”

The understanding between Sharansky and McCain is a lesser-known, but timeless example of the core values shared by both Israelis and Americans – of which McCain was a tireless proponent and champion.

Senator McCain stood in the breach continually to defend Israel, and advocate for Israel’s right to exist and right to defend herself. Whilst other politicians sought to sacrifice national security for an unsteady peace, McCain lambasted their naivety saying: “no American leader should be expected to sell a false peace to our ally, consider Israel’s right to self-defense less legitimate than ours, or insist that Israel negotiate a political settlement while terrorism remains the Palestinians’ preferred bargaining tool.” The late Senator defended Israel’s right to defend herself through conflict after conflict with an eternal zeal – a leitmotif of the Senator’s character throughout his political career. Be it the skirmishes with Hamas, the flare-ups with Hezbollah or Israel’s engagement with Syria, McCain fought the Jewish State’s corner with the same combination – ‘if the United States were in the same position, would we do any different?’ Perhaps this is why he was so loved in Israel – he applied the same standard to Israel as he would the US.

In the last few months of his legendary life, Senator McCain witnessed the US recognising Jerusalem as the eternal Capital of Israel, and the US Embassy being moved from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Perhaps most fittingly, Messrs Graham, Lieberman, and McCain, came together one last time to witness a most historic moment in the history of a State which adored them as much as they did it.

Conclusion

America is mourning. Israel is mourning. Democracy is mourning. And freedom is mourning at the loss of one its most beloved sons. A man who fought one of his toughest battles in his final months, departs this earth having impacted the history of not only America, but of countless democracies the world over. We may weep tears for this Titan of freedom, yet Senator McCain would not wish us to wallow in loss. Rather, as his funeral services show, his message in death as it was in life, was one of love, freedom and the truths that bond us. Let not the mantel of Senator McCain fall, let us rather seek to take it to the heights he strived for with every fibre of his being and beat of his heart. Rest in Peace, Senator McCain. We can never repay your service.

By Daniel O’Dowd

Seemingly fearful of the debate over whether he is in fact anti-Semitic being relegated to anywhere bar the front page, Jeremy Corbyn has once again immersed himself in controversy rather than exhibit the acumen required to lead a nation. This time, Mr Corbyn was in fact present at a wreath-laying ceremony at the graves of the Palestinian terrorists of the Black September Organisation, who masterminded and perpetrated the murder of 11 Israeli Olympic Athletes at the 1972 Olympics. However, in the words of Mr Corbyn himself: “I was present at wreath-laying but don’t think I was involved.”

The uncertainty of Mr Corbyn’s response aside, Mr Corbyn claimed he was present not to honor the perpetrators of the Munich Massacre, rather “[w]reaths were laid to mark the 1985 bombing of the PLO HQ and on the graves of others killed by Mossad agents in Paris in 1991.” This statement was made notwithstanding that the person assassinated was the PLO’s head of intelligence Atef Bseiso, in 1992 not 1991. It was the belief of the French Police investigating the incident at the time that the assassination was attributable to a rival Palestinian terrorist group Abu Nidal – Israel denied, and has continued to deny, any complicity in the assassination. As for the 1985 incident, this involved the Israeli retaliatory strike upon the PLO headquarters in Tunisia in the wake of the 1982 Lebanon war following the brutal abduction and murder of 3 Israeli tourists off the coast of Cyprus by Palestinian militants alleged to belong to the PLO’s Force 17 unit. The result of the surgical strike was the death of 60-75 PLO terrorists and the wounding of 70 more. Even if Mr Corbyn were not commemorating the Black September Organisation’s members, how was a 1992 Palestinian-led assassination relevant to Israel? And what is the difference between commemorating the ringleaders of the 1972 Munich Massacre and the crème de la crème of the PLO’s Unit 17?

Interestingly, the Guardian documents the layout of the Palestinian Martyrs’ cemetery at which this wreath-laying event took place. According to the Guardian, “[a] couple of metres behind where Corbyn and the group of people are standing are four graves of senior members of the Palestinian Liberation Organisation, thought to have been behind the Black September group.” Whereas, the deceased terrorists by way of Operation Wooden Leg in 1985, were in fact 15 yards behind Mr Corbyn. This curiosity alone does not convict Mr Corbyn, yet it does bolster the baseline consensus that Mr Corbyn is – at best – oblivious to the anti-Semitic character of his actions and the anti-Semitic environs he continually finds himself in – unwittingly or not…

However, what is perhaps most worrying about this sequence of events, is that we are beginning to see Mr Corbyn’s Modus Operandi for dealing with accusations of anti-Semitism. When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tweeted “[t]he laying of a wreath by Jeremy Corbyn on the graves of the terrorist who perpetrated the Munich Massacre and his comparison of Israel to the Nazis deserves unequivocal condemnation from everyone – left right and everything in between.” Jeremy Corbyn’s response was not to respond directly to the charges as laid before him, rather his response was to point to the violent clashes along the Gaza strip (instigated by his friends in Hamas of course), and to condemn the Jewish Nation State Bill. Nothing quite like attacking the only Jewish State’s right to defend and define itself to clear one’s name…eh?

However, Mr Corbyn has form in this regard – quite recent form in fact. When Jewish MP Margaret Hodge robustly castigated Mr Corbyn for his failure to tackle the anti-Semitism gripping the Labour Party, and in so doing, called him a “racist” and “anti-Semite” with a fine bit of French in between. Mr Corbyn reverted back to script. Seemingly, the manner in which Miss Hodge articulated her feelings were such an affront to the long-term friend of Hamas and Hezbollah Jeremy Corbyn, that the comments warranted a disciplinary investigation. Interestingly, Labour quickly offered to drop proceedings should Miss Hodge apologise. Upon her refusing to do so, Labour dropped the investigation. Here, the Modus Operandi becomes apparent – attack the person, their actions and their manner, and in so doing, don’t let the main charge stick…

Perhaps, the exemplar of this tactic (and also the paragon of how to expose this tactic) is shown in the debate in the House of Commons at Prime Minister’s Questions between Corbyn and the then Prime-Minister David Cameron. Repeatedly, Mr Cameron calls on Mr Corbyn to renounce his previous comments that Hamas and Hezbollah are his “friends.” Rather than do so, Corbyn reads off generic statement after generic statement on racism all the while trying to tar David Cameron with the actions of Zach Goldsmith in the London Mayoral race with Sadiq Khan. Sound familiar?

In trying to hold Jeremy Corbyn accountable, there is a heightened duty on the Media, the public and our public representatives not to allow Jeremy Corbyn to divert from the charges at his door and revert to tried-and-tested talking points like the tin-pot dictators he so exalts. Diversion leads to deception, deception leads to conspiracy and corruption, conspiracy and corruption can lead to anything. Let us not accept deception and falsehoods, let us only accept the whole, unfettered truth from those who ask for our votes and taxes, and let us begin with Jeremy Corbyn.