John McCain on Families & Children

	John McCain on Families & Children Republican nominee for President; Senior Senator (AZ)

Adopted daughter from Mother Teresa's Bangladesh orphanage

Sometime in Feb. 2000, a malicious e-mail alleged that "McCain chose to sire children without marriage," pointing out that one of McCain's children was not white.

My fear was that the McCain campaign would see this as an opportunity to emphasize a positive aspect about the Arizona senator. I was worried that McCain would stop ranting about negative campaigning and start describing how he and his wife came to adopt their daughter Bridget. On a trip to Mother Teresa's orphanage in Bangladesh, Cindy McCain was shown an infant who was going to die because the orphanage couldn't provide lifesaving surgery and care. The nuns urged Cindy to take the child home. She did, arriving at the Los Angeles airport to meet her husband with an infant in her arms. It would have been a powerful, positive moment if McCain had chosen to explain who he was, rather than assert he was a victim. People would have gained insight into his character & that of his wife. But he didn't do that; to this day, I don't know why.

Source: Courage and Consequence, by Karl Rove, p.153-154 , Mar 9, 2010

Supports flex-time & unpaid family leave

Support federal tax incentives to help families save for college.
Encourage employers to offer flex-time scheduling, comp-time, and unpaid leave for family emergencies.
Support housing assistance for low-income families.

Source: 2004 Presidential National Political Awareness Test , Nov 7, 2004

Unfiltered Internet robs our children of their innocence

We parents should know what our children are seeing. I can’t tell you that I always know what my children are watching. I can’t tell you exactly what they’re seeing when they go to the mall. It’s my responsibility [so] when we’re wiring every school and library with the Internet, each should have filtering software to filter out that stuff. We need to know why we’re robbing our children of the most precious treasure, and that’s their innocence. Source: Des Moines Iowa GOP Debate , Dec 13, 1999

Parents should be active in media kids are exposed to

McCain issued “An Appeal to Hollywood” calling for a “new social compact” that reminds parents of their serious responsibilities in determining the entertainment media in which their children involve themselves. “Our homes are being flooded by a tide of media violence,” said McCain. “As concerns grow over the climate of violence in our culture today, it’s important not only for parents to take a greater role in their children’s lives but also to encourage the industry to be responsible citizens.” Source: Press Release: “Media Violence” , Jul 21, 1999

Label violent media products like we label cigarettes

Saying parents need clear, consistent information about entertainment products, McCain [proposed] a uniform labeling system on all movies, video games, and music products. The “21st Century Media Responsibility Act” amends the Cigarette Labeling Act to apply its warning label requirements to violent media products. “Our children are vulnerable to images of violence. We must help parents better determine the violent content of the entertainment products by giving them information,” McCain said. Source: Press Release: “Violent Labeling Bill” , Jun 16, 1999

Media Responsibility Act requires video & music labeling

McCain will introduce a bill to create a uniform labeling system for all entertainment media violence. The “Media Responsibility Act” [requires] warning labels on violent media products. “One way to help parents is to provide consistent & clear information about what their children are purchasing,” McCain said. The bill gives the entertainment industries 6 months to establish a universal labeling system for video games, video programs, & music, [reflecting their] intensity & age appropriateness Source: www.mccain2000.com/ “Press Releases” , Jun 4, 1999

Violence in media caused Littleton shootings

Following the Littleton school shootings, McCain was one of four lawmakers who wrote Clinton after the shootings to call for a close look at “the entertainment media and the violent images and message with which they are bombarding our children.” Source: CNN coverage: AllPolitics , Apr 30, 1999

Voted YES on killing restrictions on violent videos to minors.

Vote to kill an amendment that would prohibit the distribution of violent video programming to the public during hours when children are reasonably likely to comprise a substantial portion of the audience. Voting YES would kill the amendment proposing the new restrictions. Voting NO would suport the amendment proposing the new restrictions. Reference: Bill S.254 ; vote number 1999-114 on May 13, 1999

Rated 83% by the Christian Coalition: a pro-Family-Value voting record.

McCain scores 83% by the Christian Coalition on family issues

The Christian Coalition was founded in 1989 by Dr. Pat Robertson to give Christians a voice in government. We represent millions of people of faith and enable them to have a strong, unified voice in the conversation we call democracy.

Represent the pro-family point of view before local councils, school boards, state legislatures, and Congress
Speak out in the public arena and in the media
Train leaders for effective social and political action
Inform pro-family voters about timely issues and legislation
Protest anti-Christian bigotry and defend the rights of people of faith.

Our ratings are based on the votes the organization considered most important; the numbers reflect the percentage of time the representative voted the organization's preferred position. Source: CC website 03n-CC on Dec 31, 2003

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Page last updated: Oct 27, 2021