John McCain

He is from a long line of men who have served in the military. McCain was shot down over North Vietnam and was severely tortured while a POW for 5 1/2 years.

McCain first ran for Congress in 1982 and was met with criticism from some who believed he was an outsider running for public office in an area where he had lived a short time and didn't have traditional community ties.

When a voter accused McCain in person, he responded with, "Listen, pal. I spent 22 years in the Navy. My father was in the Navy. My grandfather was in the Navy. We in the military service tend to move a lot. We have to live in all parts of the country, all parts of the world. I wish I could have had the luxury, like you, of growing up and living and spending my entire life in a nice place like the First District of Arizona, but I was doing other things. As a matter of fact, when I think about it now, the place I lived longest in my life was Hanoi."

McCain then won the election and has been in public service since that time.