In an effort to deflect the fallout from his housing problem and his wealth, Sen. McCain has been extolling the praises of his late father-in-law and how he is an American success story.  Here's a report by two multiple-award-winning investigative reporters at the New Times, on Jim Hensley's history - written for the 2000 campaign. 

I had re-read this a few weeks ago, but decided not to post about it;  but, I heard my senator use a sanitized version of how his father-in-law made the money that he has come into, and I realized that this history takes on new importance.

http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/content/printVersion/167059

From the introduction:  "John McCain's political allegiances to liquor purveyors and his father-in-law's interests are subtle. That narrative is marked by a pattern of patronage.

The Hensley saga, meanwhile, swirls with bygone accounts of illicit booze, gambling, horse racing, deceit and crime. James Hensley embarked on his road to riches as a bootlegger."

VERY interesting. 

http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/content/printVersion/167059