I had the wonderful opportunity to spend time chatting with the “unofficial mayor of Old Town,” John McCaslin. This unofficial title definitely describes him in every sense of the word, and I would venture to say that John McCaslin is one of Old Town’s favorite sons. McCaslin’s soon-to-turn ninety-two year old father still resides in the family home on Fairfax Street between Prince and Duke Street. John was born in the old Alexandria Hospital and one of his two brothers also lives in Old Town.
McCaslin has made a name for himself as a journalist, along with his love of Old Town at a young age also came a love of journalism. He used to chase fire trucks and police cars as a child, and like a budding reporter he would go back to tell his neighbors what occurred. He also had a paper route and would read the newspaper every day as a youngster. He credits his journalism mentor, late Old Town resident Jeremiah O’Leary, a White House correspondent for the Washington Star, with sparking his interest in journalism more than anybody else. Some weekends O’Leary would take his two sons and the young John McCaslin with him into the Star newsroom when he was filing stories. McCaslin credits O’Leary’s influence in one chapter of his popular 2004 book titled after his column, “Inside the Beltway.”
Even though McCaslin is an Old Town boy, he left this area to begin his journalism career. Upon graduating college, he landed in Montana and the Pacific Northwest, and characterizes his first “big” journalism break as his most exciting job. Prior to obtaining this broadcast job, he worked in a ski shop in Montana: he quipped that he was selling ski equipment before he had ever learned to ski. His first job was as an on-air news director at a Kalispell, Montana radio station, a position he held for two years before moving to another broadcast network. He became an NBC Radio stringer, his stories airing nationally, and he also was an award-winning UPI correspondent.
By the time he turned 27 years old, he was back in Washington working as a member of the White House Press Corps alongside his mentor, Jerry O’Leary. At that time, President Ronald Reagan was running for re-election. Among McCaslin’s most notable breaks, and one that many journalists would have loved to score, was President Reagan’s last public interview before he announced that he had Alzheimer’s Disease. He didn’t know this to be the case, only learning so along with everybody else when the president made the announcement a few days after the interview. McCaslin interviewed Reagan in his office in Century City, California. During the interview, McCaslin said, the President talked about the environment, which was interesting to him because critics of Reagan often remarked that he wasn’t a big supporter of the environment and relaxed many environmental standards, but this was not in the case in that interview. McCaslin said that the president talked about the acid rain problem and also the amount of choking smog in California.
When asked how he prepped for interviews with notable political figures, McCaslin remarked that he does not have a specific regimen that he follows but, as good journalists do, follows his gut. When he interviewed former President Bill Clinton at the Russian Tea Room in New York while Hillary Clinton was waging her campaign for president, McCaslin had a thought right before the interview to ask Clinton about a potential role as a roving world ambassador of sorts if Mrs. Clinton won the presidency. He said that after that interview, many other journalists started to ask Clinton similar sorts of questions about his potential White House role.
In 1992, while working at the Washington Times, McCaslin began his column, “Inside the Beltway,” which he still pens today. The column was a perfect fit for him, because at that point he had become a single dad and needed the flexibility that a column could afford. Prior to the column, he had already covered the White House on a daily basis, Congress, the war in Nicaragua, and he was the city editor at the newspaper. His column was syndicated for ten years by the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune.
McCaslin’s column is like a gift you receive from a friend who likes to surprise you -- you never know what you’re going to get. While he may write about the events and happenings in Washington, McCaslin puts his unique stamp on them. He looks for the unusual and the quirky, and tries to put a personality to the political figures that we hear about. John’s column is also unique because of John’s personal views on politics or lack thereof. He is fiercely independent and does not characterize himself as a political junkie as most other political journalists do in Washington. He doesn’t attend political fundraisers nor does he place political bumper stickers on his car.
In 2004, McCaslin’s first book was published. “Inside the Beltway: Offbeat Stories, Scoops and Shenanigans From Around the Nation’s Capital” explores little known bits of political information that provide the reader with an exclusive glimpse on how the real game of politics is played. In recognition for his work over the years, McCaslin has won several prestigious accolades. He was the 2000 conference chairman of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists and was the recipient of the 1999 Carlton Sherwood Congressional Media award.
McCaslin has worked in both print and broadcast journalism, but writing will always be his first love. He has been a regular on National Public Radio’s “Weekend Edition Sunday,” and has been a regular substitute host for the likes of Rush Limbaugh, Sam Donaldson and Mary Matalin. He also anchored a weekly “Inside the Beltway” segment on the ABC affiliate in Washington.
When asked about the future of journalism, McCaslin expressed serious concern. He noted that newspapers have experienced a decline in readership in recent years. He has also seen a growing divide between professional journalists and bloggers and feels many young people may not understand the difference between the two. He called this boom in internet journalism the “Wild West” – everything seems to be acceptable. The late Tony Snow, former White House Press Secretary under President Bush, told McCaslin to never give up the “written word” because it is one of the most powerful mediums. I have a feeling that John has taken this to heart.
When asked who, in all of these years of covering Washington politics, is his favorite lawmaker, McCaslin unequivocally responds – Senator Robert C. Byrd of West Virginia. He calls Byrd the historian of Congress. McCaslin remarks that Byrd’s depth of knowledge is overlooked and that Byrd easily recalls Greek philosophers of long ago when he makes speeches on the Senate floor. He recounted an interesting fact that Senator Byrd was the first lawmaker invited to the White House for lunch after President George W. Bush was elected president, and Byrd was most impressed that the president said grace before the meal.
In 29 years as a journalist, how does he still find subject matter for his articles? He responded that “deadlines” are the source of his inspiration: he has always had a daily deadline. Here is a brief glimpse into his schedule: “Inside the Beltway” appears daily in the Washington Times. He also files another daily column for Townhall.com and also writes a weekly column for Human Events Magazine. With all of these deadlines, remarkably, McCaslin said that he has never had writer’s block one day in his life.
In addition to his political writing, McCaslin has been a travel writer since 1992. He writes four to five travel stories per year, which he said helps him to keep his sanity. One of his favorite quotes: “The world is a book, and he who does not travel only reads one page.” When he would pull his daughter out of school to accompany him on his travel writing excursions, he would recite the quote to her teachers. How could anybody say no to that? His latest travel story was about Barbados rum.
Looking ahead, the future looks exciting for John McCaslin. His second novel, Weed Man: The Remarkable Journey of Jimmy Divine, is coming out in May and is an account of the unbelievable exploits of one of the biggest drug traffickers to infiltrate the United States.
McCaslin, along with one of his brothers, owns a home on Harbour Island in the Bahamas. This is the place where McCaslin would meet the inspiration for the main character for his book. Along with other great literary characters, Weed Man provides us with another memorable individual that people will be talking about. The book introduces us to Jimmy Moree, a law-abiding citizen turned modern-day Robin Hood in a story of intrigue within the world of narcotics. Weed Man promises to be a successful book that will definitely make summer vacations a bit more interesting. It seems like a perfect summer read.
Weed Man has just garnered Katie Couric’s first ever book endorsement. Mark Bowden, author of Black Hawk Down, says the book is "so colorful it is hard to believe ... or put down.” And Tommy Chong, the comedian and actor of Cheech & Chong fame, says it “reads like a bestseller.”
Political columnist. Travel writer. Unofficial “Mayor” of Old Town. He wears many masks. While his work has taken him to almost every place on the globe, John McCaslin would rather nothing more than to come home to Old Town Alexandria. His roots are here. Old Town is close enough to Washington to observe the political maneuvering that goes on but far enough away to savor what makes Old Town unique -- its people, its history, its character. Old Town’s favorite son always comes home.
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