6 Reasons Why McCain’s Concession Speech Was the Best of His Campaign

By On November 5, 2008 · 54 Comments

It couldn’t have been easy.

The man who has served his country since he was 17 conceded the presidency as soon as the writing on the wall was clear.

Of all the speeches McCain gave during the course of this long campaign, his concession speech was the best.

Here are 6 reasons why:

1. McCain took the high road. McCain avoided mudslinging and encouraged his booing supporters to redirect their energies and unite as Americans.

2. He kept the use of “My friends” to a minimum. Enough said.

3. He acknowledged the death of Obama’s grandmother and said she’d be proud.

4. He renewed his own commitment to public service. Despite the bitter disappointment of his loss, McCain clearly articulated his ongoing commitment to continue serving his country. He could easily retire and retain Americans’ respect for all he has done. But he obviously has no plans to do so, and he appears poised to renew his admirable history of reaching across the aisle.

5. He maintained his composure and expected others to do the same. He could have played the pity card (and alluded on SNL last weekend that undecided voters should feel sorry for him because his age meant this was his last chance to pursue a presidential run), but he didn’t. You’ve got to admire that.

6. He called for American unity. McCain modeled the behavior Americans need to adopt. He acknowledged the ideological and political differences between himself and Obama, but he underscored the need to unite and do the hard work that lies ahead.

Photo: Imageeditor (Flickr creative commons)

Activism + Politics
 

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Julie Schwietert

Julie Schwietert Collazo is a writer, editor, researcher, and translator currently in New York, formerly of Mexico City and San Juan. She is Matador's managing editor and is the lead faculty member of MatadorU's travel writing program.

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  • Hal

    Couldn't agree more!

  • d

    obama !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • Anup

    I can't believe how quickly this was posted.

  • Isa

    I'm not one of Mr. McCain's supporters but I definitely agree. He was gracious and classy in his concession, and I'm thoroughly impressed. It's good to hear him pledging his support to Obama; I'm sure he has a great deal to offer. :)

  • Mike

    Funny how Obama supporters think everyone should support him when they spent the last 8 years trashing Bush every single chance they got. Hypocrites. That said, I will do my best to support Obama and hope he does a great job.

  • dj41326

    The Bilderberg group hand picked Obama months ago. The election was a waste of time. The change the will actually happen is when Americans start changing the way they vote. Next time consider the third party.

  • Turner

    Agreed. Notice he was crying as well?

  • Jan-Willem – The Net

    Agreed. Must say that McCain (though I disagree with his politics) has proven himself to be a respectfull man with a decent amount of integrity.

  • Mekanix

    He also didn't let HER speak. Wise move.

  • szenen

    sorry but rhetoric isn't everything, you do also need some good arguments. And what we've got to admire, that he didn't sat, he could die before the next election. please don't be ridiculous. Finally the majority did understood. Thanks democracy.

  • Jim Paredes

    I agree. It was one time in a long time when I saw the greatness in him. His graciousness may yet save him a good place in history.

  • Anibal Miranda

    The man showed his integrity

  • dd donnelly

    Here Here! It was one of the best speeches in the whole election!

  • Lin

    McCain was the winning loser. He was polite and dignified. He was not in the least bit a sore loser, or if he was, he pulled on the mask really well. I am glad that Obama won but I am also glad that it did not end in negativity between the two. Lets hope for this new fresh start in a near global change and let us all hope for the best, after all, we are one and whatever happens, happens to us all.

  • G

    These two Neo-Con Nut Jobs, Obama and McCain, can't even write a speech let alone work for the American people for 4 years, You must realize that Democracy is the worst kind of governance and America is joining the ranks of 3rd world nations that continue to put themselves more into debt. Please be watchful in the coming months as Bush Jr. sets up the presidency for Obama. It would be a sore tragedy if another false flag terror event was to occur, like 9/11.

  • Jake

    He took the high road, and when people booed (the act of booing?) Obama, he quieted them and told them that they shouldn't do that. BTW, computers still don't accept Obama as a word. It still tells me it's wrong.

  • IslaLife

    Great post! I totally agree! Let`s hope Obama does a lot of good!

  • Hostgator

    Indeed it's not easy to accept the lost! But sorry McCain. You run presidency at the wrong time. All the best to you!

  • joe the plower

    A heartfelt concession speach holds little merit after all those nasty attack ads the McCain crew released.

  • me

    John McCain — Classy guy

  • AlanRaj

    Yep, i saw his concession speech in Singapore…It was indeed a defining moment for him too.He restored my respect that i lost for him through this speech

  • Katy

    Definitely. I was impressed by his speech and composure.

  • C. Proseedcake

    I agree. Staunch Obama man, but even I had to be impressed by that concession speech. Still mighty glad it wasn't a victory speech though.

  • Kate

    And he didn't say Maverick! He was a true gentleman and exemplified the best qualities of his party .

  • Shan

    AMEN! I thought it was very dignified and even though I was a Obama supporter, this IS the McCain that most of us remember from times before.

  • SuperNu

    And he LOST… Thank you lord. :)

  • Nate

    Agreed! I am also an Obama supporter but I was glad to see the McCain I remember liking.

  • Daniel

    Ya McCain Lost, thank god….else he would have wasted billions on war and fighting, which is good for nothing. I dont think he will be a good president if he had won, each month US is spending 10 Billions on war which does not have a valid reason. Just imagine who much they will spend if McCain won. Thank you Lord.

  • Kaye

    Cool article, but you really haven't explained why you think it's the best of his campaign. Only why you think it was good.

  • chuckles

    dumb article. waste of my time reading, waste of your time writing. grace is the expectation. oh and has anyone else noticed that obama has come straight out and said that there is no quick or easy end to the afghanistan conflict? he hasn't said he'll being our troops home. i give him some props for at least not lying to us . . . but shame on him for pussyfooting around the subject. he will continue to spend those $10B every month for a long time. the media just won't cover it as much because he's a democrat, and thus you won't compain about it anymore. because you won't know.

  • Valerie

    Well summed-up, Julie.

  • Independent

    It is also funny how Republicans spent the 90's trashing Clinton and acted as if America should worship the President once Bush snuck in the White House.

  • elipton

    I thought that the speech he gave was the best of the campaign as well the minute i heard it.

  • Aaron

    Funny how you have to compare apples to oranges to support your pre-conceived opinion. Bush supporters also called for bi-lateral support when he (kinda) won his first term. And he got it. That's a valid comparison. Compare beginning of term to beginning of term. But I know, as a Republican, logic is not your specialty. If Obama runs us into the ground as much as Bush has, he'll get trashed too. So stop spouting off and do something.

  • Chester the Spoon

    I don't believe McCain is a classy man (his campaign proved that), but he did absolutely deliver a classy speech. Reaching out his hand to hush his rabid crowd is what sealed it for me – it's something Sarah Palin never had the sense to do. It was a great speech.

  • Barack Obama

    6 reason why he lost…

  • gregg

    He still kept using the word "Fight". He and the Republican party have to get used to the idea that the world is tired of fighting. Forget "Fight", and like Obama, focus on the word "Build"

  • Julie

    Funny how you totally misread this. But thanks for making me laugh– it's the first time I've EVER been called a Republican.

  • robb

    hey aaron, youre saying that republicans arent logical, or conservatives? lets look at the fundamentals of being a liberal. its basically "take the guns from the law-abiding citizens because we cant get them from the criminals so we'll settle for the next best thing, then when we're done with that we can raise the taxes on those citizens and make the government even bigger because they know what's best for us and it would be a travesty if the people weren't protected from themselves." im from minnesota where all of the fun fireworks are banned. why? probably because some idiot blew himself up with them, and instead of holding the idiot responsible, they take all the fun away from the rest of us. not my choice, but the government knows best so it's best that i dont argue, right? im sure you agree since you seem pretty liberal. if you dont agree, then what the hell are you doing voting democrat? theyr'e taking our rights. i dont care if i sound like a hick here, but i hunt and use my firearms to shoot game (legally) and targets. its enjoyable and there's no reason i should lose that because some overpaid, asshole politician thinks theyre dangerous. id say youre the one with a little piece of the logical part of your brain missing….that is unless you WANT to be told what's best for you.

  • J.S.

    Yeah, stupid Americans! You people are dumb. Electing for a President that you guys barely know. Change is good but Obama? He has doubtful background. If anyone could dig up his background and his affiliates, I bet there might be terrorist aided his campaign if not the muslin community. I say this because Obama, despite declining he's a Muslim, is a Muslim. Because in that religion "once a Muslim, always a Muslim". Yeah, you can stop fighting and start building. But if American forces were to be pulled out of middle east, the world will see the country as weak. Now just sit there while they plan another 9/11 or similar terrorist attack in your country.

  • glb310

    If McCain had acted and spoken this intelligently during his campaign, I might have voted for him. While he did not win the debates, I believe he won the "concession vs. acceptance" category.

  • Jon

    Once Obama was "named" President. did you notice how the press coverage changed? Now instead of piling on McCain, while slobbering all over Mr. Obama, the press lets McCain's words actual come out. Funny how that works. Get off the party-lines and start evaluating how to work together to fix the country. McCain was a hero before the election and remains a hero after it. The jury is still out on Obama, since we've only seen him in action for four years as a Senator. Now we'll have to live with his decisions, good or bad.

  • SickOfThis

    Why is Unity with the socialist half of our country a good thing?

  • puh-leese

    ahhh!! how f'ing short is the collective american memory?! he took the high road when there was absolutely nothing riding on it anymore. what did you think he'd say? i'll give him credit for having a brain and being a decent orator, but after months and months of negative ads and cheap shots he makes one 5 minute speech and he's "classy"? when the chips were down he showed us his true colors. don't forget that because something tells me he's not going away. (btw, he also showed his classiness to his first wife, but i digress). sickofthis: we'd prefer to be called the socialist 53% from now on. thanks.

  • Olivebeard

    MS Word doesn't recognize formal names until you right-click and select "Add to Dictionary".

  • Olivebeard

    For the same reason that Robert E. Lee called upon confederate soldier to lay down their arms, and Abraham Lincoln did not impose strict penalties on confederate soldiers following the end of the American Civil War. Indignity is not a helpful part of winning any conflict–whether it's the "socialists" over the "nationalists" , "republicans" over the "democrats", "Coalition" over the "Terrorists" or "Main Streeters" over the "Wall Streeters".

  • DHarbecke

    I wish we'd noticed he was a sleeper Muslim 4 years ago, when we voted him into the Senate. If only J.S. was around then. He could've warned us before we put him into a position of power or something. So come on back sometime and school us some more, and don't forget the clown shoes. I never could figure out – why would fundamentalist Republicans mind a fundamentalist Muslim as president, anyway? If they can stomach Gitmo, they should be happy with Shariah law and burkas, family values based on suppressing women and minorities, theocracy, so on.

  • DHarbecke

    So we can half your stuff, of course! Gimme gimme gimme!

  • DHarbecke

    So you're saying that with Obama leading most of the polls, the press should have been paying more attention to McCain? Ooo-kay… I think this article does a nice job of paying credit where due, and being conciliatory towards one another after 8 years of divisiveness isn't a bad place to start "fixing the country."

  • Coach

    Change in America…I believe we should support and encourage whoever our leader is. I have never been a fan of blasting a president. I firmly believe that we do not have near the information a president has to speak boldly on most issues. True change and hope for America will come about like is has before, by having Americans, as a whole, make wise choices with their education, buisnesses, finances, and family. We as Americans are responsible for the housing crises, if we make unwise or greedy choices as invividuals or lenders….we will have to face the results. America will change for the better, but it will be the result of millions of individual Americans making healthy choices…not just one man.

  • bipolar2

    McCain followed tradition with his obligatory concession speech. Redeeming it was not. I can get more redemption value from an empty Coke bottle. Basically Old Salty's a slug still leaving a slimy trail as he pokes along back to America's finest old folks home — the Senate.

  • Sam

    I don't understand what you are trying to say.

  • sam

    that was directed towards Mike. ( I agree with the author of this post)

  • Brooks

    Don't drink the cool-aid!!!!!