His statement on Face the Nation, “I don’t think getting in a fighter plane and getting shot down is a qualification to become president,” is both devastating and complex.

• It plays into the views of most servicemen and ex-servicemen, that the “flyboys” are a bunch of pampered over appreciated folk.
• It compares to JFK’s statement on his heroism, “It was unavoidable, they sank my boat”.
• Clark’s position as a general and a soldier allows him to put McCain’s record on the table.
• It raises McCain’s actual record, which is not so good, he almost made negative ace, which is now on the table.
• It takes one of the central pillars of his public personae, and challenges it.

After all that, finding out that Libertarian presidential candidate Bob Barr accusing the Republican Party and John McCain of being lying jackals is sort of an anti-climax, but it’s nice to see him piling on.