Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
His 13-month command of Replacement Air Group 174 in Jacksonville shows how he manages and provides clues about what he might be like as president. In 1975, McCain became executive officer of the group, which trained pilots and crew members for aircraft carrier service. The RAG, as it was known, had 1,000 people and 75 planes, the Navy's largest aviation squadron. Eyebrows were raised when he became commanding officer a few months later. Some suspected favoritism because he was the son and grandson of famous Naval officers. But according to people who served under McCain in the training group, he earned high marks for invigorating a unit that had been struggling with a fleet of broken planes. "He was very inspirational," said Bob Stumpf, a student pilot at the RAG who later led the Navy's Blue Angel team. "He was always personally involved. He didn't hide in his office." Carl Smith, who served as a flight instructor with the group and is a Washington lawyer and lobbyist, said McCain was a savvy manager who got rid of ineffective employees, hired talented people, set goals and kept his workers motivated. "He gave the old crowd a chance to perform. When they didn't, he fired them," said Smith. McCain inherited a squadron that had many crippled planes. He set a goal of getting them all repaired and achieved it in just more than a year.
And as I said, that Navy experience predates his adultery and his involvement with Keating. So it's all relevant to the kind of leader he would be.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.