Cindy McCain: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia

Article Images

Line 1:

{{Infobox Person

| name = Cindy Hensley McCain

| image =CindyMcCain.JPG

| imagesize = 150px

| caption = Cindy McCain.

| birth_name = Cindy Lou Hensley

| birth_date =

| birth_place = Phoenix, Arizona

| death_date =

| death_place =

| other_names =

| known_for = Wife of U.S. Senator and Presidential Candidate [[John McCain]]

| occupation = [[Philanthropist]] and [[Businessperson]]

| nationality = [[United States|American]]

| spouse = [[John McCain]] (1980-present)

| alma_mater = [[University of Southern California]]

| party = [[United States Republican Party|Republican]]

| religion =

| website =

}}

'''Cindy Lou Hensley McCain''' (born '''Cindy Lou Hensley''' ca. [[1954]]<ref name="bazaar"/>) is the wife of [[United States Senator]] and 2000 and 2008 [[presidential candidate]] [[John McCain]] of [[Arizona]]. She is [[Board of directors|chair]] of Hensley & Company,<ref name="hensley">[http://www.abwholesaler.com/hensley/AboutUs/Contacts "About Us: Our People"], Hensley & Company website, URL last accessed November 14, 2006.</ref><ref name="yahoo profile">{{cite web | url=http://biz.yahoo.com/ic/121/121680.html | title=Hensley & Company Company Profile | publisher=[[Yahoo! Finance]] | accessdate=2008-01-11}}</ref> one of the largest [[Anheuser-Busch]] distributors in the nation.<ref name="hensley"/> Founder of the [[American Voluntary Medical Team]], she is an active [[philanthropist]] and serves on boards of several charitable organizations.

==Early life and education==

Cindy Lou Hensley grew up in affluent circumstances<ref name="salon-tapper"/> in [[Phoenix, Arizona]],<ref name="bazaar"/> the daughter and only child<ref name="usa-10">{{cite news | url=http://www.usnews.com/articles/news/national/2007/12/05/10-things-you-didnt-know-about-cindy-mccain.html | title=10 Things You Didn't Know About Cindy McCain | author= Bobbie Kyle | publisher=[[USA Today]] | date=[[2008-01-11]] | accessdate=2008-01-11}}</ref> of James and Marguerite Hensley,<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/22/AR2006102201228.html "Sen. John McCain's mother-in-law dies"], ''[[The Washington Post]]'', [[October 22]], [[2006]] (URL last accessed November 14, 2006).</ref> who founded Hensley & Company in 1955.<ref name="yahoo profile"/> She attended Madison Meadows Elementary and was a [[rodeo]] queen in 1968.<ref name="nyt062907">{{cite news | url=http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/29/us/politics/29cindy.html | title=Mrs. McCain Is Speaking Up in a Steely Tone | author=Jennifer Steinhauer | publisher=[[The New York Times]] | date=[[2007-06-29]] | accessdate=2008-01-12}}</ref> She went to [[Central High School (Phoenix, Arizona)|Central High School]]<ref name="usa-10"/> in Phoenix. She graduated from the latter in 1972,<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.centralhighalumni.org/Newsletters/October2003.pdf | publisher=Central High Alumni' Echoes | title=Association announces honorary co-chairs | date=October-November 2003 | accessdate=2008-01-11}}</ref> having been a [[cheerleader]] there.<ref name="az-arizona"/>

Hensley received her undergraduate degree in [[education]]<ref name="mcc2008-bio">{{cite web | url=http://www.exploremccain.com/About/CindyBio.htm | title=About Cindy McCain | publisher=John McCain 2008 | accessdate=2008-01-11}}</ref> and a masters in [[Special education|special education]] from the [[University of Southern California]].<ref name="care"/>She was a member of the [[Kappa Alpha Theta]] sorority.{{Fact|date=January 2008}} There she participated in a [[movement therapy]] pilot program that laid the way for a standard treatment for severely disabled children;<ref name="mcc2008-bio"/> she published the work ''Movement Therapy: A Possible Approach'' in 1978.<ref>{{cite book | url=http://books.google.com/books?id=0-uxIAAACAAJ&dq=%22movement+therapy%22+%22cindy+lou+hensley%22 | title=Movement Therapy: A Possible Approach | last=Hensley | first=Cindy Lou | publisher=[[University of Southern California]] | year=1978 | id=Order number 2576H}}</ref> Declining a role in the family business,<ref name="nyt030200"/> she then began a special education teaching career working with disabled children at [[Agua Fria High School]] in [[Avondale, Arizona]].<ref name="mcc2008-bio"/>

==Marriage and family==

Hensley met [[John McCain]] in 1979 at a military reception in [[Hawaii]].<ref name="az-arizona">{{cite news |url=http://www.azcentral.com/news/specials/mccain/articles/0301mccainbio-chapter5.html |title=John McCain Report: Arizona, the early years |author=Dan Nowicki, Bill Muller |publisher=[[The Arizona Republic]] |date=[[2007-03-01]] |accessdate=2007-11-21}}</ref> He was the [[U.S. Navy]] [[liaison]] officer to the [[United States Senate]], eighteen years her senior,<ref name="bazaar"/> and in a somewhat troubled marriage to his first wife, Carol.<ref name="Kristof">{{cite news

|url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B02EFDF1439F934A15751C0A9669C8B63

|title= P.O.W. to Power Broker, A Chapter Most Telling

|publisher=[[The New York Times]]

|date=[[February 27]], [[2000]] |author=[[Nicholas Kristof]]

|accessdate=2007-04-22}}</ref> McCain and Hensley quickly fell in love;<ref name="bazaar">{{cite news | url=http://www.harpersbazaar.com/magazine/feature-articles/cindy-mccain-0707 | title=Cindy McCain: Myth vs. Reality | author=Nancy Collins | publisher=[[Harpers Bazaar]] | date=July 2007 | accessdate=2008-01-11}}</ref> he divorced Carol in April 1980, and he and Cindy were married on [[May 17]], [[1980]] in Phoenix. Her father's business and political contacts helped gain her husband a foothold into Arizona politics,<ref name="Kristof"/> and she campaigned with him door-to-door during his successful first campaign for [[U.S. Congress]] in 1982.<ref name="nyt062907"/>

After several [[miscarriage]]s,<ref name="bazaar"/> Cindy Hensley McCain gave birth to three children: Meghan (born 1984), John Sidney IV (known as "Jack") (born 1986), and James (born 1988).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nndb.com/people/914/000023845/ |title=John McCain |publisher=[[NNDB]] |accessdate=2007-11-23}}</ref>  The family stayed in Arizona; her parents lived across the street and helped her raise her children while her husband was frequently in Washington.<ref name="bazaar"/>

==American Voluntary Medical Team==

In 1988, Cindy McCain founded the [[American Voluntary Medical Team]] (AVMT), a [[non-profit organization]] that organized trips for doctors, nurses, and other medical personnel to provide emergency medical care to disaster-struck or worn-torn third-world areas such as [[Micronesia]], [[Vietnam]], [[Kuwait]], [[Iraq]], [[Nicaragua]], [[India]], [[Bangladesh]] and [[El Salvador]].<ref name="salon-tapper"/><ref name="care"/><ref name="one-life"/><ref name="alexander">{{cite book |title = Man of the People: The Life of John McCain |first = Paul |last = Alexander |authorlink=Paul Alexander |url= |id = ISBN 0-471-22829-X |year = 2002 |publisher = [[John Wiley & Sons]]|pages=p. 163}}</ref> She led 55 of these missions over the next seven years;<ref name="mcc2008-bio"/> AVMT also supplied treatment to poor sick children around the world.<ref name="feinberg">{{cite book |last=Feinberg |first=Barbara Silberdick |title=John Mccain: Serving His Country |publisher=[[Millbrook Press]] |year=2000 |isbn=0761319743}} p. 35.</ref> While at [[Mother Teresa]]'s [[orphanage]] in [[Dhaka, Bangladesh]] in 1991 — as part of AVMT's assistance team following the [[1991 Bangladesh cyclone]]<ref name="one-life">{{cite book | last=McCain | first=Cindy Hensley | coauthors=Gina Bridgeman | chapter=One Life at a Time | title=A Second Chicken Soup for the Woman's Soul: 101 More Stories | editor=Canfield, Hansen, Hawthorne, Shimoff | publisher=[[Health Communications, Inc.]] | year=1998 | isbn=1558746218}}</ref> — she met two infant girls she decided needed to be brought to the United States for medical treatment.<ref name="bazaar"/> She decided to adopt one of the girls (her husband readily agreeing), later named Bridget<ref name="salon-tapper"/> (who became the McCains' fourth child together), and helped coordinate the adoption of the other little girl, named Mickey, for Wes Gullett, a family friend.<ref name="salon-tapper"/> In 1993, Cindy McCain and the AVMT were honored with an award from Food for the Hungry.<ref name="salon-tapper"/>

==Drug addiction==

In 1989, Cindy McCain became addicted to [[painkillers]] such as [[Percocet]] and [[Vicodin]].<ref name="az-rebound">{{cite news |url=http://www.azcentral.com/news/specials/mccain/articles/0301mccainbio-chapter8.html |title=John McCain Report: Overcoming scandal, moving on |author=Dan Nowicki, Bill Muller |publisher=[[The Arizona Republic]] |date=[[2007-03-01]] |accessdate=2007-11-23}}</ref> She later attributed her addiction to pain following two spinal surgeries for [[Spinal disc herniation|ruptured discs]]<ref name="cnn112299">{{cite news | url=http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/stories/1999/11/22/cindy.mccain/index.html | title=Cindy McCain stays on an even keel | author=Bill Delaney | publisher=[[CNN.com]] | date=[[1999-11-22]] | accessdate=2008-01-12}}</ref><ref name="alexander-more"/> as well as emotional stress during her husband's entanglement in the [[Keating Five]] scandal of that time,<ref name="az-rebound"/> which also involved her role as a bookkeeper who had difficulty finding receipts of Keating-related expenses.<ref name="nyt030200">{{cite news | url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9D01E4D61F39F930A35750C0A9669C8B63 | title=Unexpectedly, Cindy McCain Basks in a New Political Role | author=Melinda Henneberger | publisher=[[The New York Times]] | date=[[2000-03-02]] | accessdate=2008-01-12}}</ref> The addiction progressed to the point where she resorted to stealing drugs from her own AVMT.<ref name="cnn112299"/> During 1992, [[Tom Gosinski]], the director of government and international affairs for AVMT, discovered her drug theft.<ref name="salon-silverman">Silverman, Amy, [http://www.salon.com/news/feature/1999/10/18/drugs/ "How Cindy McCain was outed for drug addiction"], ''[[Salon.com]]'', [[October 18]], [[1999]] (URL last accessed September 15, 2007).</ref> Subsequently in 1992, McCain's parents staged an [[Intervention (counseling)|intervention]] to force her to get help;<ref name="nyt030200"/> she told her husband about her problem, attended a drug treament facility, began outpatient sessions, and ended her three years of addiction;<ref name="az-rebound"/> a [[hysterectomy]] in 1993 resolved her back pain.<ref name="az-rebound"/><ref name="alexander-more"/> In January 1993, McCain terminated Gosinski's employment on grounds of budgetary reasons.<ref name="salon-silverman"/> In spring 1993, Gosinski tipped off the [[Drug Enforcement Administration]] to investigate McCain's drug theft.<ref name="salon-silverman"/> Her activities violated federal statutes, so a federal investigation was conducted. McCain's defense team, led by noted Washington lawyer [[John M. Dowd|John Dowd]],<ref name="salon-silverman"/> secured an agreement with the [[U.S. Attorney]]'s office that limited her punishment to financial restitution and enrollment in a [[diversion program]], <ref name="salon-tapper"/><ref name="salon-silverman"/> without anything being made public.

Meanwhile, in early 1994 Gosinski filed a [[wrongful termination]] lawsuit against McCain, which he told her he would settle for $250,000. In April 1994, Dowd requested that [[Maricopa County, Arizona|Maricopa County]] officials investigate Gosinski for [[extortion]].<ref name="salon-silverman"/> At this point, the ''[[Phoenix New Times]]'' was preparing a negatively-cast story about the whole affair and about to publish it.<ref name="salon-silverman"/><ref name="az-rebound"/> Cindy McCain pre-empted this<ref name="az-rebound"/> by publicly revealing her past addiction, stating she hoped it would give fellow drug addicts courage in their struggles: "Although my conduct did not result in compromising any missions of AVMT, my actions were wrong, and I regret them."<ref name="salon-tapper"/> A flurry of press attention followed, including charges by Gosinski that she had asked him to lie concerning her drug use when the McCains were applying to adopt their baby from Bangladesh<ref name="az-rebound"/> and statements by past AVMT employees that Gosinski had once threatened to blackmail her. A few weeks after her announcement, the [[Variety Club]] of Arizona canceled its Humanitarian of the Year award dinner in her honor citing poor ticket sales.<ref name="salon-tapper">[[Jake Tapper|Tapper, Jake]], [http://dir.salon.com/story/news/feature/1999/07/02/hillary/index.html?pn=3 "I'm not Hillary"], ''[[Salon.com]]'', [[July 2]], [[1999]] (URL last accessed April 4, 2007).</ref> In the end, both Gosinski's lawsuit and the extortion investigation against him were dropped.<ref name="az-rebound"/> AVMT concluded its activities in 1995.<ref name="care"/>

==Subsequent years==

In 1995, McCain founded a new organization, the [[Hensley Family Foundation]], which donates monies towards children's programs in Arizona and nationally,<ref name="salon-tapper"/> but she was largely a [[stay-at-home mom]].<ref name="nyt030200"/>

Although wary of the media,<ref name="salon-tapper"/> McCain was active in her husband's unsuccessful campaign for [[President of the United States]] in 2000.<ref name="nyt030200"/> She impressed Republican voters with her looks and elegance at coffee shops and other small campaign settings.<ref name="nyt062907"/> She was upset by the notorious smear tactics against her husband in the [[South Carolina primary]] that year, which included allegations against her adopted daughter Bridget that she found "despicable",<ref name="nyt030200"/> but eventually forgave those responsible.<ref name="nyt062907"/> She was chosen as the chair of the Arizona delegation to the [[2000 Republican National Convention]].<ref name="mcc2008-bio"/>

In 2000, she became chair of the now $300-million-a-year Hensley & Company,<ref name="abc052507">{{cite news | url=http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/Story?id=3213349&page=1 | title=Cindy McCain's Straight Talk | author=Jennifer Rubin | publisher=[[ABC News]] | date=[[2007-05-25]] | accessdate=2008-01-12}}</ref> following her father's death.<ref name="alexander-more">{{cite news | url=http://www.more.com/more/story.jsp?storyid=/templatedata/more/story/data/1187029206605.xml | title=Cindy McCain at Full Throttle | author=[[Paul Alexander]] | work=[[More (magazine)|More]] | date=September 2007 | accessdate=2008-01-30}}</ref> She became actively involved with [[Operation Smile]] in 2001,<ref name="smile">{{cite press release | url=http://www.operationsmile.com/docs/pr20050912.pdf | title=Operation Smile to Honor Cindy McCain, ... | publisher=[[Operation Smile]] | date=[[2005-09-12]] | accessdate=2008-01-12}}</ref> taking parts in trips with it to [[Morocco]], [[Vietnam]], and [[India]].<ref name="smile"/> She was honored by the organization in 2005,<ref name="smile"/> and sits on its [[board of directors]].<ref name="care"/>

She joined the board of directors of [[CARE (relief)|CARE]] in 2005.<ref name="care">[http://www.care.org/about/boardbios.asp?id=13 "CARE Board Member Biography: Cindy Hensley McCain"], [[CARE (relief)|CARE]] website, URL last accessed November 14, 2006.</ref> She is on the board of the [[HALO Trust]],<ref name="care"/> and has visited operations to remove [[landmine]]s in [[Cambodia]], [[Sri Lanka]], [[Mozambique]], and [[Angola]].<ref name="mcc2008-bio"/>

McCain suffered a near-fatal [[stroke]]<ref name="alexander-more"/> in April 2004 due to [[high blood pressure]],<ref>Villa, Judi, "Cindy McCain goes home; full recovery is expected", ''[[The Arizona Republic]]'', [[April 17]], [[2004]].</ref> but after several months of physical therapy to overcome her leg and arm limitations made a mostly full recovery, although she still suffers from some [[short-term memory]] loss and difficulties in writing.<ref name="alexander-more"/> She has been active and visible in [[John McCain presidential campaign, 2008|her husband's presidential campaign during 2007 and 2008]],<ref name="nyt062907"/> including making statements critical of the [[George W. Bush administration|Bush administration]] for not deploying enough troops during the [[Iraq War]].<ref name="nyt062907"/> She states that the American public wants a [[First Lady of the United States]] who will tend toward a traditional role in that position.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/1213cindy1212.html | title=Cindy McCain: Caring, campaigning and coping | author=Richard Ruelas | publisher=[[The Arizona Republic]] | date=[[2007-12-13]] | accessdate=2008-01-12}}</ref>

==Notes==

[[Category:1954 births]]

[[Category:American philanthropists]]

[[Category:Baptists from the United States]]

[[Category:Businesspeople in the beverage industry]]

[[Category:American schoolteachers]]

[[Category:Spouses of United States Senators]]

[[Category:Spouses of United States Representatives]]

[[Category:University of Southern California alumni]]

[[Category:People from Phoenix, Arizona]]

[[Category:American adoptive parents]]

[[Category:Living people]]

[[Category:John McCain]]

[[Category:Women in business]]