The 2009 TIME 100 Finalists

2009 Candidates

Manuel Balce Ceneta / AP

John McCain

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AGE: 73
OCCUPATION: U.S. Senator, former presidential candidate
PREVIOUS APPEARANCES ON THE TIME 100: 2

PRO: Rather than slink away after his failed presidential bid, McCain has remained a firecracker in the Senate, counseling the President on issues like Iraq and sparring with him on the stimulus.

CON: Fairly or not, his campaign — with its rickety debates, combustible staffers and mercurial messages — is seen as the tipping point for the current Republican malaise.

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