Who is Cindy McCain's drug addiction?
Advertisement. In describing her struggle with drugs, McCain has said that she became addicted to Vicodin and Percocet in early 1989 after rupturing two disks and having back surgery. She has said she hid her addiction from her husband, Sen. John McCain, and stopped taking the painkillers in 1992 after her parents confronted her.
What did Cindy McCain do for American voluntary medical team?
From 1989 to 1992, Cindy McCain was a drug addict. She was addicted to Percoset and Vicodin. Rather than go to a street dealer or doctor shop like Rush Limbaugh, McCain stole pills from the ...
What happened to John McCain's Doctor?
Sep 01, 2020 · According to Biography, Cindy Lou McCain (née Hensley) was born 1954 in Phoenix, Ariz.She grew up in the Copper State with considerable money coming from her father's successful beer distribution ...
Who is Cindy McCain's husband?
The irony is that Cindy's secret would have stayed secret if John McCain's heavy-hitting lawyer, John Dowd (of D.C.'s Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld; his …
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Sep 11, 2008 · However, it’s likely that John McCain knew about Cindy’s addiction as far back as 1991, when she did her first stint in rehab at a clinic in Wickenburg, AZ.
Who is Cindy McCain?
Cindy Lou McCain ( née Hensley; born May 20, 1954) is an American businesswoman, philanthropist, humanitarian, retired special education teacher and author. She is the widow of United States Senator and 2008 Republican presidential nominee John McCain from Arizona and the mother of television host and commentator Meghan McCain .
Where did Hensley meet McCain?
Hensley met John McCain in April 1979 at a military reception in Honolulu, Hawaii. He was the U.S. Navy liaison officer to the United States Senate, and was accompanying a group of senators heading for China. She was in Hawaii on a family vacation with her parents.
When did Cindy McCain become chairman of Hensley and Co?
Cindy and John McCain at a Naval Sea Cadet Corps graduation, Fort Dix, New Jersey, July 2001. In 2000, she became chair of the now $300 million-a-year Hensley & Co. following her father's death. It is one of the largest Anheuser-Busch beer distributors in the United States.
Where was Cindy Lou Hensley born?
Early life and education. Cindy Lou Hensley was born in Phoenix, Arizona, to James Hensley, who founded Hensley & Co., and Marguerite "Smitty" Hensley (née Johnson). She was raised as the only child of her parents' second marriages and grew up on Phoenix's North Central Avenue in affluent circumstances.
Where did the AVMT go to help?
In 1991, the AVMT went to Dhaka, Bangladesh, to provide assistance following the 1991 Bangladesh cyclone. While at Mother Teresa 's Dhaka orphanage, the Sisters of Charity of Mother Teresa Children's Home, McCain met two infant girls she felt needed to be brought to the United States for medical treatment. She decided to adopt one of the girls, later named Bridget, with her husband readily agreeing; the adoption became final in 1993. She helped coordinate the adoption of the other little girl for family friend Wes Gullett.
Who are the McCain children?
The full McCain family in 2008. In the front row are the children with Cindy: Meghan, Jimmy, Jack, and Bridget. In the back row are his children from John McCain's first marriage: Andrew, Douglas, and Sidney. Her father's business and political contacts helped her new husband to gain a foothold in Arizona politics.
Who was the Democratic Senator from North Dakota during the Sedona Forum?
Later in that year she staged appearances with Heidi Heitkamp, Democratic Senator from North Dakota, to discuss human trafficking in that state and elsewhere.
Why did Cindy McCain use pills?
So Cindy McCain used pills meant to ease the suffering of starving African children for her own personal drug use.
Why did the Hensleys tell Cindy she had a problem?
The Hensleys told Cindy they knew she had a problem because of her severe mood swings and her change in character. They also said her meanness towards others was not excusable and must stop. . . . When Cindy was eventually caught by the DEA, she confessed to them and reporters that she was a drug addict.
Was Cindy McCain a drug addict?
From 1989 to 1992, Cindy McCain was a drug addict. She was addicted to Percoset and Vicodin. Rather than go to a street dealer or doctor shop like Rush Limbaugh, McCain stole pills from the charity she founded. McCain had founded The American Voluntary Medical Team, a relief organization whose purpose was to aid Third World countries.
Who is Cindy McCain?
Cindy McCain is immediately recognized as the widow of the late John McCain, former Senator and presidential candidate for the Republican party in 2008. She's also the mother to Meghan McCain, the TV personality who "who turned The View into must-see TV once again with her passionate monologues ...
What were the challenges of Cindy McCain?
Specifically, The Washington Post later recounted, "she overcame both a mild stroke and a prescription drug addiction."
How old was Cindy when John and Cindy got married?
However, as The Washington Post noted, the romance reportedly started with deception from both parties: "John pretended to be younger and Cindy pretended to be older. They discovered the 18-year age difference (he was 43, she was 25) when they applied for their marriage license and wed in 1980.".
Where did John McCain and Cindy McCain start their family?
Cindy McCain and John McCain chose to start a family in their home state of Arizona , rather far from his post in Washington D.C.
Where did Cindy McCain grow up?
Porter Gifford/retired/Getty Images. According to Biography, Cindy Lou McCain (née Hensley) was born 1954 in Phoenix, Ariz. She grew up in the Copper State with considerable money coming from her father's successful beer distribution business.
Who was Cindy Hensley married to?
The businessman first married Mary Parks and the two had a daughter, Kathleen Portalski. After they divorced, Hensley married Marguerite Johnson, who herself "had a daughter, Dixie Burd, by a previous relationship.". Together, Hensley and Johnson welcomed Cindy Hensley in 1954.
Is Cindy McCain an only child?
But in reality, she is one of two children fathered by Jim Hensley. The businessman first married Mary Parks and the two had a daughter, Kathleen Portalski.
Who orchestrated Cindy McCain's story?
What McEachern and the others didn't know was that, far from being a simple, honest admission designed to clear her conscience and help other addicts, Cindy McCain's storytelling had been orchestrated by Jay Smith, then John McCain's Washington campaign media advisor. And it was intended to divert attention from a different story, ...
What drug did Cindy McCain steal?
Published October 18, 1999 4:00PM (EDT) GOP presidential candidate John McCain's wife Cindy took to the airwaves last week, recounting for Jane Pauley (on "Dateline") and Diane Sawyer (on "Good Morning America") the tale of her onetime addiction to Percocet and Vicodin, and the fact that she stole the drugs from her own nonprofit medical relief ...
Why did Gosinski sue McCain?
The DEA launched an investigation. Almost a year later, with the statute of limitations about to run out, Gosinski hired a labor attorney and sued Cindy McCain for wrongful termination. He intended to claim that she fired him because she suspected he knew about her addiction, but the lawsuit never got that far.
Was Cindy McCain a first time offender?
True, Cindy was a first-time offender, which partially explains the fact that she did no prison time; instead, she entered a diversion program. But at the time, defense lawyers told New Times that if Cindy McCain had been a poor minority and not married to a U.S. senator, she likely would have been locked up.
When did John McCain's wife confess to problems?
When an attempt to get tough with a whistleblower backfired in 1994, the McCain spin machine went into overdrive, and the candidate's wife confessed to problems the media was already poised to reveal. GOP presidential candidate John McCain's wife Cindy took to the airwaves last week, recounting for Jane Pauley (on "Dateline") ...
Who did John Dowd call in for the clean up?
John Dowd did, and then Jay Smith was called in for the clean-up. A few postscripts: Tom Gosinski left town shortly after Cindy McCain's story broke. By that time, his lawsuit had died, ignored. The county did not pursue the extortion investigation against him.
Did McCain come clean?
It was so reminiscent of the summer day in 1994 when suddenly, years after she'd claimed to have kicked her habit, McCain decided to come clean to the world about her addiction to prescription painkillers. I believe she wore red that day.
Who is Cindy McCain?
Cindy McCain is an Arizona businesswoman, a philanthropist who works with international nonprofit organizations, and was married to U.S. Senator John McCain.
When did Cindy McCain meet John McCain?
She met John McCain in 1979 while she was on vacation with her parents in Hawaii. He was still married, but separated, from his first wife. John and Cindy McCain were married May 17, 1980 in Phoenix. John McCain was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1982 and to the U.S. Senate in 1986.
How many children does John McCain have?
The McCains have four children: Meghan (b. 1984), John IV (known as Jack, b. 1986), James (known as Jimmy b. 1988), and Bridget (b. 1991 in Bangladesh, adopted by the McCains in 1993). She is also a stepmother to three children from John McCain's first marriage, Doug, Andy and Sidney.
Where was Cindy McCain born?
Early Life. Cindy Lou Hensley McCain was born May 20, 1954, in Phoenix, Arizona. As an only child, McCain was raised in Arizona. She earned a B.A. in education and a M.A. in special education from the University of Southern California. She taught at Agua Fria High School in Avondale, Arizona.
Who did Sarah Palin run against in 2008?
She actively campaigned for her husband during his successful bid for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination. He picked Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate. They eventually lost to Democrat Barack Obama and his running-mate, Joe Biden.
Who founded the American Voluntary Medical Team?
Cindy McCain founded the American Voluntary Medical Team (AVMT) in 1988, leading several medical missions to developing and war-torn nations during the Team's seven-year existence. She made news in 1994 when she admitted to a painkiller addiction and said she had stolen drugs from AVMT.
What was John McCain's wife's addiction?
In the late 1980s, she developed an addiction to prescription opiates which were prescribed to her after a spinal surgery. McCain was reportedly taking more than 20 pills per day each day at the height of her addiction before she was checked into rehab in 1992.
When did George Carlin enter rehab?
Iconic comedian George Carlin entered a rehabilitation program in December of 2004. In typical Carlin fashion, he understated the problem and invited his audience to take a fresh perspective on drugs.
Did Gary Oldman go to rehab?
In 1995, he checked himself into rehab. The actor has said that he continued attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings to stay sober, and has described himself bluntly as a recovering alcoholic.
Did Zac Efron go to rehab?
The one-time teen heart-throb Zac Efron discretely checked into rehab in 2013. At the time, his representatives told TMZ that he was dealing with alcoholism, though sources from the set of Neighbors said that Efron had been known to use drugs including cocaine.
Early Life and Education
Marriage and Family
- Hensley met John McCain in April 1979 at a military reception in Honolulu, Hawaii. He was the U.S. Navy liaison officer to the United States Senate, and was accompanying a group of senators heading for China. She was in Hawaii on a family vacation with her parents. Hensley was talking to Jill Biden, the wife of Senator Joe Biden, who suggested that she talk to McCain; her father m…
American Voluntary Medical Team
- Founding and mission
In 1988, inspired by a vacation that she took four years earlier to substandard medical facilities on Truk Lagoon, McCain founded the American Voluntary Medical Team (AVMT). It was a non-profit organization that organized trips for doctors, nurses and other medical personnel to provide MA… - Adoption
In 1991, the AVMT went to Dhaka, Bangladesh, to provide assistance following the 1991 Bangladesh cyclone. While at Mother Teresa's Dhaka orphanage, the Sisters of Charity of Mother Teresa Children's Home, McCain met two infant girls she felt needed to be brought to the United …
Role in 2000 Presidential Campaign
- Although wary of the media and still having no love for the political world, McCain was active in her husband's eventually unsuccessful campaign for President of the United States in 2000.She mostly provided good cheer, without discussing her opinions about national policy. She impressed Republican voters with her elegance at coffee shops and other small campaign settin…
Between Presidential Campaigns
- In 2000, she became chair of the now $300 million-a-year Hensley & Co. following her father's death. It is one of the largest Anheuser-Busch beer distributors in the United States. Together, McCain, her children, and one of John McCain's children from his first marriage own 68 percent of the company. As chair, her role takes the form of consultations with the company CEO on major …
Role in 2008 Presidential Campaign
- She was active and visible in her husband's second presidential campaign during 2007 and 2008, despite not wanting her husband to run initially due to bad memories of their 2000 experience and worries the effect on her children, especially son Jimmy who was headed to serve in the Iraq War. She eventually supported her husband in his goals, but defined her own campaign roles; she freq…
Subsequent Activities
- After the election, McCain was approached about appearing on Dancing with the Stars. She seriously considered participating, but according to her husband, was concerned that her surgically replaced knee would not be able to withstand the rigors of the competition. Continuing her humanitarian aid work with a January 2009 trip to Dubai, India, and Cambodia, she said that …
Husband's Illness and Death
- In July 2017, her husband was diagnosed with a glioblastoma, an aggressive brain tumor. She issued a public statement saying that, "We as a family will face the next hurdle together. One thing I do know is he is the toughest person I know. He is my hero and I love him with all my heart."Senator McCain underwent treatment, and after December 2017 no longer went to Washi…
Later Activities
- Following her husband's death, McCain moved back to her childhood neighborhood. She became chair of the McCain Institute's Board of Trustees.She also joined the family's #ActsofCivility campaign, with the aim of encouraging people to interact with those they disagree with. In February 2019, she faced backlash after making claims on KTAR-FM that she saw human traffic…
United States Ambassador
- McCain was seen by the Biden administration as a likely, or even a "must do", for an ambassadorship nomination. In late November 2020, the possible post of United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom was mentioned in connection to her.She responded to the notion of any potential nomination by saying, "In whatever way he sees fit, I would be proud and …