John McCain said the right things Thursday at Shanksville.
But he shouldn’t have been there at all.
The Arizona senator paid tribute to the 40 victims of Flight 93, which crashed in a field here on Sept. 11, 2001. He spoke eloquently of their courage and sacrifice.
And by no means did this memorial service degenerate into a campaign rally. Tact was applied, and the candidate was appropriately somber. Still, the ceremony to mark the seventh anniversary of the terrorist attacks was not the place for someone running for president.
Shanksville on this day was not the place for campaign buttons that dotted the crowd of more than 400. It was not the place for the “Go John!” calls from the crowd that greeted the candidate when he arrived, or the cheers that arose when he visited with well-wishers and when he approached the lectern to speak. The Flight 93 crash site is not the place for politics.
McCain was joined at the ceremony by his wife, Cindy. Both the Republican candidate and Barack Obama, his Democratic rival, were to appear later at ground zero in New York. Each pledged to set aside the political rhetoric for the day.
But they should have made the better choice – both of them – and simply stayed away.
The crowd at Shanksville swelled to twice the size of last year’s gathering. People lifted digital cameras and cell phones, trying to capture an image of the presidential hopeful.
An Iraq war veteran in the crowd spoke passionately about his service and the sacrifice of the Flight 93 passengers and crew. But he also produced a business card bearing the Republican Party logo and declared himself a McCain supporter. This was not the time for that statement.
The Flight 93 crash site is a place for quiet reflection. It is a place for sorrow over the tragedy that occurred there and a place to be uplifted at the thought of ordinary people making the ultimate sacrifice in a moment of unimaginable horror.
Those working toward a permanent memorial at Shanksville have an ally in McCain. He has donated money to the effort. He has promised to push for completion of the project.
Indeed, this candidate is a decorated war hero, a former prisoner of war. If anyone can speak of sacrifice for one’s country, of facing life-threatening circumstances and choosing the right path regardless, it is John McCain.
But on this day, he should have offered his tribute from afar.
Chip Minemyer is the editor of The Tribune-Democrat. He can be reached at 532-5091.
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CHIP MINEMYER | McCain should have spoken from afar
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