Is McCain (Physically/Mentally) Fit To Lead?

I've been reticent to make much of McCain's advanced age because, as I've mentioned to those who have poked fun at his age, there is no lack of issues of substance to which McCain is vulnerable, not to mention childish and superficial attacks on his age just make us look small (much like McCain looks with his juvenile "celebrity" attack ads). That said, I'm really starting to think his age might be an important issue. Let me explain.

First, McCain has only held one public campaign event on a weekend since winning the Republican nomination back in February. All the while Obama, with the exception of this past week, has been hard at work on the campaign trail, weekends included, for over a year and a half. Hillary did the same thing while she was campaigning, there was no time to take weekends off, let alone almost every single weekend for 6 months. When I first became aware of this I was shocked. I couldn't believe he took every weekend off. Apparently campaigning without two days off every five days is too rigorous for McCain at 72. McCain also typically only holds a single campaign event per day.

Not only that, despite having months of free general election campaigning time while Hillary and Obama went 53 rounds in the primaries, many Republicans have criticized McCain for basically squandering that extra time, and having nothing to show for it. He didn't hit the campaign trail hard, he just loafed around for months, campaigning at full snail pace, while of course taking weekends off, so at the end of the Democratic primary, McCain had basically nothing to show for his time advantage. Obviously this had Republicans quite frustrated. Again, this is unheard of in presidential campaigns.

So what was McCain doing during this time? He certainly wasn't doing his job as a senator for Arizona. Yes, all presidential candidates who are sitting members of Congress inevitably miss a lot of votes, because let's face it, campaigning is a full-time job, and I certainly don't fault the candidates for that. Obama and Hillary both missed a lot of votes while engaged in their year and a half long struggle for the Democratic nomination. But even though McCain had four months of free time with basically no opponent, he still showed up for work in Congress far less than Obama and Hillary. Here is a rundown from the end of July, which will give an idea how how MIA McCain has really been. Please note that the picture is even worse than what these numbers show, because he hasn't shown up for any votes or hearing since these numbers were up-to-date.

Any way you measure it, McCain's performance in the Senate during the last year has been abysmal. He has missed 400 votes, far more than any other Senator (including Tim Johnson, who's recuperating from a brain hemorrhage). In May Ronald Hansen of the Arizona Republic referred to "his chronic absence in the Senate" as if the problem is well known in McCain's home state. Earlier this month he was the only Senator to skip the vote on the Medicare bill. At the time, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid publicly criticized McCain for his regular absences.

Here are some numbers:

LI>63% - How many votes in the Senate McCain has skipped during the 110th Congress (since January 2007).
• 96 - The number of Senate votes McCain has missed since his last recorded vote on April 8.
• 111 (Update: 132) - The number of days since McCain last attended a committee hearing (of the Senate Armed Services Committee, on April 9).
• 25% - How many full SASC hearings McCain has attended during the 110th Congress.
• 89% - How many full SASC hearings McCain has skipped since April 2007 (32 out of the last 36 hearings).
• 2007 - The last year in which McCain attended any Commerce, Science & Transportation Committee hearings or subcommittee hearings.

The League of Conservation Voters noted in February that McCain has skipped every one of the 15 Senate votes on environmental issues that it deemed critical during this Congress.

Read the whole thing here.

But leave it to McCain to heap some serious hypocrisy onto his pathetic record:

[Commenting on Congress not lifting the ban on offshore drilling before its recess]

"The Congress, doing nothing, decided to go on a five-week recess," said McCain. "Congress should come back into session... and I'm willing to come off the campaign trail."

Woah, big words from the big dog! He even said he'd show up to work for a change to vote on such an important issue as getting the oil companies more profit. The same article in which McCain was quoted saying this puts this in context of the other votes that McCain doesn't find nearly as important as oil company profits:

• Medicare Reimbursement Cuts, 7/9/08
• The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, 7/9/08
• The New GI Bill, 6/28/08
• A $44 Billion Stimulus Package (McCain was in D.C. at the time) 2/7/08
• Equal Pay Legislation, 2/23/08
• All 15 Key Environmental Votes, according to the League of Conservation Voters

Alright, so let's review. McCain takes more time off from the campaign than any other presidential candidate has. Despite having four extra months on the campaign trail, McCain has barely anything to show for it, yet he also managed to show up for work less than any other senator, including all of the other presidential candidates, and a senator who had a major stroke. These are the things that have been building up in the back of my head over the last few months, and taken together they paint a picture that is somewhat alarming.

But it does get worse. This was in an article a little over a week ago:

McCain said he would concentrate on getting more sleep when he can.

"If I put in three or four 18-hour, 20-hour days in a row, I'm not sharp. It's just a fact," the Republican senator from Arizona said. "I'm more sharp if I get a little rest."

McCain said he feels best sleeping until 7:30 or 8 a.m., as opposed to his usual morning drill of rising at 5:30 or 6 a.m.

"It seems to help me to get up a little later in the morning," he said, joking, "Sorry to bother with that intimate detail."

Yeah, I'm sure it is rough, but needing to sleep til 8am? Seriously? People with regular 8-5 jobs don't even have that luxury, and their job isn't to run the country. This is not a job for the feint of heart. It is a 24/7 job. Remember all of those ridiculous ads Hillary ran saying she's the one ready for that 3am phone call? Well despite her giving absolutely no reason for us to believe Obama wasn't ready to answer that same phone call, she was right when she said that crises can occur in the middle of the night, or at any time. You always have to be ready to go. 24/7. Have you noticed how when presidents go into the White House they have color in their hair, and when they leave they have a LOT more white hair? Obviously this doesn't apply to McCain who has had white hair seemingly forever, but the point is, THIS IS A HARD AND EXHAUSTING JOB! Oh, but it does get worse still.

Back in May there was an overlooked* revelation that McCain has been using the sleeping pill Ambien on the trail to help him sleep. This is a pill to be taken only if you can get 7 to 8 hours of sleep, meaning if you take it, and there is a 3am phone call, your ass is going to be sleeping through it. Its side effects include amnesia, fugue states**, drowsiness, cognitive impairment, reaction impairment, and sleep walking. It also has potential effects on how you feel while awake, in addition to drowsiness, it is suggested that users be careful driving or operating machinery, or doing anything that requires them to be awake and alert until they know how Ambien affects their abilities. Ambien also comes with a warning that "The sedative effects of Ambien may be stronger in older adults. Accidental falls are common in elderly patients who take sedatives. Use caution to avoid falling or accidental injury while you are taking Ambien." Ambien may also be habit-forming. It is also not recommended for people who have a history of depression, mental illness or suicidal thoughts (I have no idea what goes on in McCain's mind, but he was a POW, as he loves to point out, and has a very aggressive temper). Ambien has also notably caused some people to do things like driving, eating, or making phone calls in their sleep, and later having no memory of the activity.

Alright, so my point is, this 72 year old man wants to have probably the most stressful and intense job in the world, yet he has to take much more time off than other candidates despite his much easier schedule. He has admitted to not being sharp without plenty of sleep, and he is taking powerful sedatives that have stronger reactions with elderly people, and cause people to be unable to think clearly, and which have the potential to cause amnesia, and producing zombie-like states in users where they don't remember doing complex activities because they are so sedated. Dr. Donald W. Greenblatt, director of the Strong Sleep Disorders Center at the University of Rochester Medical Center had this to say about McCain's Ambien use:

But while the overall risks of behavioral and judgment effects due to Ambien may be low, sleep experts agree that in a high-importance role such as the presidency, proper planning is needed when considering its use.

"Ambien should only be taken when you have a window of seven to eight hours for sleep," Greenblatt said. "Your staff should know that you've taken the medication, and that you should not be involved in any decision-making during that time."

[Dr. Peter A. Fotinakes, medical director of the St. Joseph Sleep Disorders Center] added that sleeping pills and other sedatives have been proven to be more potent in the elderly. In light of this, he said, "It may not be the best idea for the commander-in-chief to be under the influence when he or she may have to make a snap decision regarding national security in the middle of the night; Hillary's so-called telephone call at 3:00 a.m."

I'm not, I repeat NOT, saying this to make fun of McCain's age, but we need to be honest here. There are important 3am phone calls. The president cannot be sedated when those critical calls come. We can't have the president taking prescription sedatives that greatly impair cognitive and motor functions and just hope that nothing goes wrong in the world for the next 8 hours (not counting the wake-up fog period). And the president cannot take weekends off. The president can't sleep in til 8. The president can't simply decide to work less than his counterparts. Those are just the facts. McCain is old, it is a fact, and he certainly won't get any younger. This is about readiness. I've seen him during the middle of the day struggling with basic facts and his memory. We can't have a part-time president who may or may not make it through 4 years, let alone 8. Many have speculated that Reagan showed signs of Alzheimer's in his second term, these are real issues. And all joking aside, McCain's difficulties with basic facts, memory, and understanding complex issues (although his last one may just be because he is purposely being deceptive, like offshore drilling) may point to this already being a very real problem. In fact, I'm far less concerned with his cancer reoccurring than I am with the issues I've just raised, although I'd include stroke in the list of worries. One stroke and we are out a Commander-in-Chief. And on top of that McCain has been less than forthcoming with his medical records.

I honestly think we are to the point at which McCain's advanced age could be a major problem, not just for his campaign, but the country if he is ever elected president.

Update: Check out the petition to find out if McCain has Alzheimer's.

Update (8/29): The fact that McCain just chose a completely unqualified person as his VP makes all of this even more important, because now if McCain kicks the bucket or has to step down because of Alzheimer's or cancer or something else, the presidency doesn't go to someone experienced (although still very wrong) like Joe Lieberman, nor even someone relatively inexperienced like Mitt Romney, it will go to someone completely inexperienced, and over their head. Anyone who ever used experience as a rationale for not supporting Obama should be terrified at McCain's VP pick, who would be just a heartbeat away from the big seat.

* H/T to JedReport and BlatantLiberal for catching this.

** A Fugue state is a state of mind characterized by abandonment of personal identity, along with the memories, personality and other identifying characteristics of individuality. The Fugue state is a condition of Dissociative Fugue (formerly Psychogenic Fugue).