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On The Trail with John McCain

By John F. Dickerson of Time Magazine

John McCain likes to get up early. So by 6:45 a.m. last Wednesday, the reporters who cover his campaign were on their way to his house in Phoenix, Arizona, to pick him up for a flight to Washington State. The Senator almost never gets to sleep in his own bed, but he was home for the Arizona primary on Tuesday.

He won that primary and one in Michigan, so he was in a good mood when he jumped on the bus and made his way to the back, where reporters sit in a semicircle around him, asking questions. I've sat there almost every day for the past two months.

He usually eats doughnuts for breakfast. On the plane to Washington, he had a breakfast burrito--eggs, potatoes and salsa wrapped in a tortilla. He drinks a lot of coffee.

At 9 a.m. he held a town-hall meeting at Gonzaga University in Spokane. About 300 voters got to ask him questions. One was a nurse who had taken care of him after he came back injured from a Vietnamese prisoner-of-war camp. As he talked, I went downstairs for ice cream. I didn't miss anything. His meeting was on TV in the school cafeteria.

We flew to Seattle for a speech at noon and interviews. During a quiet moment, he and his wife Cindy read the paper and made some calls. At night he uses his cellular phone to check on his four kids. He makes sure they do their homework and always tells them that he loves them.

At 4 p.m. we were off for another speech, this time by boat! We sailed for an hour to Bremerton, Washington, where they build Navy ships. Senator McCain was in the Navy, so this kind of town is perfect for him to visit. At least 5,000 people showed up and stood for hours just to hear him. For the reporters, it wasn't perfect. We were tired. It started raining. Time to fly to California and sleep.

But no! Before takeoff, the pilot steered the plane into the mud. It took five hours to get us out. We landed in California at 4 a.m.--23 hours after our day had begun. Two hours later, we were all awake and back on the road.

At 63, McCain is the oldest candidate in the race, but he seems to thrive on this punishing schedule--especially when he's winning. If he goes on to win the nomination in August, there will be another two months of campaigning ahead. Can't wait.

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