THE TOWN HALL TEST
The late John McCain was a bona fide American hero who served our country as a naval aviator, demonstrated courage as a prisoner of war, and compiled a record of bipartisan achievement over 35 years in the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate. This election year reminds us of yet another McCain accomplishment: A campaign style which set the standard for deciding whether a candidate is fit to serve as President. At a surreal moment in American politics, the example John McCain provided for engaging voters is missing from the arena.
When he entered the 2000 Republican presidential contest, McCain was not expected to win. Despite his national service and governmental success, he was also a political maverick who bucked his party’s establishment on issues like campaign finance reform. After the presumptive favorite, then-Texas Governor George W. Bush, easily won the Iowa caucuses, many expected him to roll to the general election without serious opposition.
But a funny thing happened on the way to the Republican nomination. Senator McCain won the New Hampshire primary by nearly 19% over Bush. Many observers remember that Granite State campaign for the Straight Talk Express — the McCain campaign bus where he conducted rolling on the record interviews with political reporters. While that transportation-based transparency was laudable, John McCain ultimately won the contest because he connected directly with those having the most important roles in American democracy: Citizens.
In his 2002 book Worth the Fighting For: The Education of an American Maverick and the Heroes Who Inspired Him, McCain described his New Hampshire strategy as follows:
“Rather than follow traditional patterns of campaigning there, photo ops at diners and dogsled races in poses suggesting a candidate’s common touch, punctuated by the occasional serious policy speech to show one’s ‘vision,’ we decided on a rigorous schedule of town hall meetings. We would show up in communities all over the state, many more than once, and invite anyone interested to come and ask whatever questions they wanted. I would speak for a few minutes, and then open the floor to the audience. We didn’t pick or screen the audience. We didn’t plant questions. We took them as they came. Nor would I use every question to nod my head in agreement and compliment the questioner’s intelligence. When I disagreed with someone I said so, sometimes more sharply than courtesy or self-interest required…By the end of the primary, I had participated in 114 town hall meetings, a record that will probably stand for many years. They weren’t just entertainment. They were hard work. But they were an honest form of communication with the voters that I came to appreciate greatly. I’m deeply grateful to those thousands of good people who showed up to listen to my pitch and share their concerns. I learned more from them than they every learned from me, and at my age, that is a real blessing.”[1]
Over the course of those 114 town hall meetings, McCain demonstrated all of the characteristics that made him a credible presidential candidate: Candor in his fundamental commitment to truthful communications with potential constituents, including at times telling them what they didn’t want to hear; Clarity in discussing issues and defining the choice voters faced in the election; Confidence that he could engage citizens repeatedly without the safety nets of carefully staged encounters designed to minimize public relations risks; and Curiosity in listening to and learning from town hall attendees — making it about them, not him.
John McCain never achieved the presidency and passed away in August 2018 during his fifth Senate term. But the legacy of his 2000 New Hampshire primary campaign lives on today as a model of how presidential candidates should comport themselves and connect with the citizens they seek to represent. No matter how well meaning his or her aspirations, if a presidential hopeful cannot pass the town hall test of candor, clarity, confidence, and curiosity, she or he probably should not pursue the nation’s highest-elected executive office.
The June 27 presidential debate, as well as the campaign before and after the debate, have provided scant evidence the presumptive 2024 nominees meet the standard John McCain set. Former President Trump’s mendacity through numerous untruths is incompatible with the duty of candor. His chronic self-focus leaves little room for curiosity about anyone not named Donald J. Trump. President Biden’s challenges have impeded his ability to provide clarity about his vision for a second term or frame the stark choice before voters in November. His puzzling decision to avoid an immediate post-debate array of interviews, live press conferences and televised meetings with citizens has conveyed a lack of confidence in his capacity to implement a more robust communications response. Neither evokes memories of John McCain in New Hampshire circa 2000.
Shouldn’t we have a president for the next four years who can pass the town hall test? Wouldn’t it be healthier for democracy if major party nominees could stand before Americans in their own communities and connect with them like John McCain did? Why should citizens accept anything less than a standard of full engagement?
Voters certainly seem to want alternatives to the present choice. In survey after survey, Americans have expressed a desire for something different. A March 2024 Economist/YouGov poll revealed half or more of those questioned did not want either Joe Biden or Donald Trump to run again. The Bloomberg News/Morning Consult post-debate survey released on July 6 found substantial doubt as to whether either candidate should continue his campaign. And in a Pew Research Center poll released today (July 11), 87% of those surveyed believe “the campaign does not make them feel proud of the country.” Fifty-three percent (53%) of all registered voters — and 71% of Biden supporters — would replace both candidates if they could.
While people are shouting for an option not named Joe Biden or Donald Trump, that remains the choice for now. But it is not too late. Next week, Republicans will meet in Milwaukee to nominate their ticket. In August, Democrats will convene in Chicago to do the same. Those gatherings provide final opportunities for the parties to demonstrate a skill John McCain showed during his town halls: Learning from citizen concerns. The party that follows his lead is more likely to see its presidential candidate take the oath of office on January 20, 2025.
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Chris Hand is a government law attorney who served as Chief of Staff at the City of Jacksonville, Florida, and has helped candidates in various local, state, and federal political campaigns. He previously co-authored America, the Owner’s Manual: You Can Fight City Hall — and Win and authored the 50th anniversary update to A Quiet Revolution: The Consolidation of Jacksonville-Duval County & the Dynamics of Urban Political Reform.
[1] McCain, John, and Mark Salter. Worth the Fighting For: The Education of an American Maverick and the Heroes Who Inspired Him. Random House, 2002, pp. 370–372.
