Last Sunday (June 29) retired Army General Wesley Clark startled “Face the Nation” host Bob Schieffer by questioning Senator John McCain’s military experience as a qualification for the presidency. Schieffer was asking General Clark about his description of Senator McCain as “untested and untried,” and when pressed by Schieffer, Clark said, “I don’t think riding in a fighter plane and getting shot down is a qualification to be president.” While these comments have caused considerable controversy, it is not the first time General Clark has questioned or downgraded Senator McCain’s experience.

Last spring, when General Clark was supporting Senator Clinton (before she dropped out of the race), General Clark argued for Senator Clinton’s superior credentials and experience (versus Obama and McCain): “If you look at what Hillary Clinton has done during her time as the first lady of the United States, her travel to 80 countries, her representing the U.S. abroad, plus her years in the Senate, I think she’s the most experienced and capable person in the race.”
Now, according to General Clark on “Face the Nation,” experience is trumped by “having good judgment” and “the ability to communicate” and, of course, according to Clark, Senator Obama has “incredible communication skills” and “proven judgment.”
While judgment and communication skills are important, the most important and essential trait is character, and while there is no reason to question Senator Obama’s character, there is tremendous evidence to affirm Senator McCain’s–and the most compelling part of that evidence is his military experience.
Senator McCain, shot down and severely injured while flying a combat mission over North Vietnam, was held captive and brutally tortured for five and a half years. He survived and was considered both a leader and a hero by his fellow P.O.W.’s.
And yet, Senator McCain was offered early release to go home by his captors, once they discovered he was the son of Admiral John McCain, commander of the U.S. Pacific fleet. Senator McCain chose to remain and face years of continued torture and deprivation rather than abandon his fellow prisoners of war.
Surely, such courage and character tell us more than a little about what kind of president a man would be. Senator Obama might possess similar qualities of self sacrifice and courage under fire and torture. However, in Senator McCain’s case, we need not speculate. We know.
It is a discredit to General Clark that he would question or downgrade Senator McCain’s military experience as an important indicator of how Senator McCain would respond to the pressures that accompany occupancy of the Oval Office.