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The Private Wealth Behind McCain's Public Life

Liquor fortune behind the McCains remains largely out of the public eye

By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff

Posted Aug 23, 2008 7:13 AM CDT

(Newser) – John McCain is one of the wealthiest men in the Senate, but the McCain fortune is less open to scrutiny than that of most lawmakers, the New York Times reports, since the vast bulk of it remains solely in the name of wife Cindy. She has a controlling stake in the privately held beer distribution company inherited from her father, which nets her an estimated $5 million a year, and her investments carry few disclosure requirements.

Still, it was the liquor fortune built by McCain's father-in-law which propelled his entry into politics shortly after he married Cindy and took a job with the family firm. The Times scrutinizes Cindy's role at Hensley & Company, and her relationship to the colorful father who left it to her, though she has never played an active role there. The number of homes she owns is 10, the paper notes, including rental properties.


Cindy Hensley McCain, seen here in a 2007 file photo,  inherited a huge fortune built by her beer baron and racetrack owner father Jim Hensley.
Cindy Hensley McCain, seen here in a 2007 file photo, inherited a huge fortune built by her beer baron and racetrack owner father Jim Hensley.   (AP Photo/Matt Sayles)
Cindy McCain arrives at her husband John McCain's campaign headquarters, Saturday, Aug. 2, 2008, in Washington.
Cindy McCain arrives at her husband John McCain's campaign headquarters, Saturday, Aug. 2, 2008, in Washington.   (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)
John Mccain gives a thumbs up to the crowd next to his wife Cindy McCain, left, before his speech at the National Council of La Raza annual convention in San Diego, Calif., Monday, July 14, 2008.
John Mccain gives a thumbs up to the crowd next to his wife Cindy McCain, left, before his speech at the National Council of La Raza annual convention in San Diego, Calif., Monday, July 14, 2008.   (AP Photo/Denis Poroy)
Hensley & Co. headquarters is seen Tuesday, Feb. 12, 2008, in Phoenix. As heiress to her father's stake in the company, Cindy McCain is an executive whose worth may exceed $100 million.
Hensley & Co. headquarters is seen Tuesday, Feb. 12, 2008, in Phoenix. As heiress to her father's stake in the company, Cindy McCain is an executive whose worth may exceed $100 million.   (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
In this Feb. 5, 2008 file photo John McCain walks down a hallway in his home lined with photographs and news clippings of his career in Phoenix, Ariz.
In this Feb. 5, 2008 file photo John McCain walks down a hallway in his home lined with photographs and news clippings of his career in Phoenix, Ariz.   (AP Photo/Stephan Savoia, File)
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Cindy is a private person, and I think in many ways that defines her.
- Robert Delgado, her father’s successor as chief executive of Hensley & Company

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