Tran Trong Duyet - a sprightly retiree and amateur ballroom dancer - must rank as one of John McCain's more unlikely supporters.
Four decades ago, during the Vietnam war, Mr Duyet was in charge of the notorious Hoa Lo prison - the place where Mr McCain says he was brutally beaten and tortured during five-and-a-half years as an American prisoner of war.
"McCain is my friend," said 75-year-old Mr Duyet as he feeds the caged birds he now keeps in his garden in this coastal city.
"If I was American, I would vote for him."
BBC NEWS | Asia-Pacific | 'When John McCain was my captive'
1) He keeps caged birds as a hobby?
I don't know whether to laugh or cry at the irony...
2) Does this count as an endorsement scandal?
Or does this count towards McCain having innately irrepressible charm?
< end sarcasm >
3) In all seriousness, I wish McCain could have been spared this crap.
I would think it just plain good taste for nobody to ever mention this under "news" or campaign circumstances.