John McCain, the Senate's Most Influential Hawk, Is Dead

John McCain, the last great active American political figure of the 20th century, has lost his battle with cancer at age 81.

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McCain helped shape the purpose and application of Washington's considerable power for nearly half a century. His passing leaves as an open question what kind of future that McCain-style politics—with its robust, moralistic interventionism both at home but especially abroad—has in a political party and country that elected his rhetorical tormentor, Donald Trump.

A former prisoner of war and two-time presidential candidate, McCain was a man whose irascible restlessness and sense of patriotic honor propelled him to defy his Vietnamese captors, tackle unusual legislative crusades, and wage periodic battles with his own party's leadership. As the Cold War gave way to a U.S.-led new world order, McCain shook off his hard-earned Vietnam Syndrome to become a pivotal figure behind some of the most interventionist foreign policies in modern American history.

Produced by Todd Krainin. Written and narrated by Matt Welch.
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