What was John McCain's Net Worth and Family Wealth?
John McCain was a senior United States Senator from Arizona who had a net worth of $16 million at the time of his death in 2018. It should be noted that John's widow Cindy McCain is worth over $400 million thanks to a beer distribution company she inherited called Hensley & Co. During John's multi-decade political career, the couple reported their assets separately on federal financial disclosures. For over thirty years, McCain served as a United Senator for Arizona. Prior to that, he served in the US House of Representatives and was the Republican nominee for president in 2008.
McCain is also known for being a veteran of the Vietnam War, during which he was shot down and taken prisoner by North Vietnamese forces. In 2017, John was diagnosed with an aggressive form of brain cancer, and he passed away one year later in 2018 at the age of 81.
Early Life
John Sidney McCain III was born on August 29th of 1936 at Coco Solo Naval Air Station in the Panama Canal Zone. John was born into a military family and his father was a naval officer at the time of his birth. He was initially raised alongside two siblings in the Panama Canal, which was United States territory at the time. McCain comes from a long line of military leaders, and both his father and his grandfather became four-star admirals in the Navy.
Because his father was stationed all over the United States and the Pacific, John never spent too long in one place while he was growing up. In 1951, the McCains finally settled in Northern Virginia, which allowed John to lay down roots and attend a private preparatory boarding school for an extended period of time. During his high school years, he became an accomplished wrestler.
After graduating, there was only really one option for John. Like his father and his grandfather before him, he quickly enrolled at the United States Naval Academy after finishing high school. During his time at the Naval Academy, he developed a reputation for being a leader, and he also became a lightweight boxer. He graduated with a ranking of 894 out of 899 students.
Military Career
After graduating from the Naval Academy, McCain trained to become a naval aviator. After finishing flight school in 1960, he was assigned to an A-1 Skyraider squadron aboard the USS Intrepid and the USS Enterprise. Despite crashing multiple times during his flight missions, he eventually gained a reputation as a good pilot.
After marrying his first wife, Carol Shepp, John had his first child. He then requested a combat assignment and was sent to Vietnam. He flew an A-4 Skyhawk over Vietnam at the age of 30 during Operation Rolling Thunder. In 1967, he was aboard the USS Forrestal when a dangerous fire erupted. After an explosion triggered by the fire, the USS Forrestal was put out of commission.
McCain subsequently volunteered to serve aboard the USS Oriskany and continued to fly missions over Vietnam. Later in 1967, he was shot down by a missile over Hanoi. John broke both legs and one arm when he ejected from his aircraft and was subsequently taken prisoner by North Vietnamese soldiers. He was then stabbed with a bayonet and transported to Hoa Lo prison.
John's captors refused to provide him with any meaningful medical treatment, and he was beaten and interrogated regularly. However, the North Vietnamese soldiers treated him better after they discovered that his father was an admiral. His health continued to deteriorate, and he was sent to a hospital. Although no one really expected John to survive, he somehow pulled through and was put in solitary confinement for two years.
Although he was given the chance to be released early, McCain refused and insisted on being released after those who had been captured before him. This was part of the military Code of Conduct, which states that soldiers should never accept special treatment from the enemy. This enraged the North Vietnamese, and they started to torture him until he was forced to make an anti-US propaganda statement. After he reached his breaking point, his treatment became more tolerable until he was finally released in 1973 after spending 5 and a half years in captivity.
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Political Career
Upon returning to the United States, John started working as an instructor at a training squadron. His marriage eventually fell apart due to his extramarital affairs. John first became involved in politics when he became the Navy's liaison to the US Senate. In 1979, he met his second wife Cindy, and they were married in 1980. In 1981, McCain retired from the Navy and focused entirely on politics.
After gaining the support of several influential figures within Arizona, John ran as a Republican for an open seat in Arizona's congressional district. He just barely managed to win the primary election, but the general election that followed was a much easier hurdle. As a member of the House of Representatives, McCain's political stance was largely in line with Ronald Reagan's.
In 1987, McCain was elected to the US Senate. However, it was later revealed that along with four other senators, he had received $112,000 from Charles Keating Jr. in a questionable deal. The scandal was later coined the "Keating Five" affair. During his early years as a senator, McCain started to carve out his own unique political stance. In 2000, John ran for the Republican presidential nomination, but he eventually lost to George W. Bush.
In 2008, McCain successfully gained the Republican nomination and ran against Barack Obama, losing the election. He continued to be an active figure in US politics over the next few years until his cancer diagnosis in 2017. In 2018, he decided to cease his cancer treatments, and John McCain died later that year.
Real Estate Holdings
The McCain family has considerable real estate holdings. Prior to John's death, the family was in possession of at least 7 properties. Not long after her husband's death, John's widow Cindy purchased another property in Phoenix for $2.28 million.
