You say that as though it were a bad thing, Rap. This is all that W either did or tacitly condoned:

"McCain Slurs Included Illegitimate Children, Homosexuality And A Drug-Addict Wife.
Among the rumors circulated against McCain in 2000 in South Carolina was that his adopted Bangladeshi daughter was actually black, that McCain was both gay and cheated on his wife, and that his wife Cindy was a drug addict.

Bush Campaign Used Code Words to Question McCain's Temper.
A smear campaign of the ugliest sort is now coursing through the contest for the presidency in 2000. Using the code word "temper," a group of Senate Republicans, and at least some outriders of the George W. Bush campaign, are spreading the word that John McCain is unstable. The subtext, also suggested in this whispering campaign, is that he returned from 5 1/2 years as a POW in North Vietnam with a loose screw. And it is bruited about that he shouldn't be entrusted with nuclear weapons.

Bush Supporters Questioned McCain's Sanity.
Some of George W. Bush's supporters have questioned Republican presidential candidate John McCain's fitness for the White House, suggesting that his five years as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam drove him insane at the time.

Bush Supporters Spread Racist Rumors About McCain's Daughter.
Bush supporters in South Carolina made race-baiting phone calls saying that McCain had a black child. The McCains' daughter, Bridget, was adopted from Mother Teresa's orphanage in Bangladesh. In August 2000, columnist Maureen Dowd wrote that the McCains are still seething about Bush supporters in South Carolina spreading word of their dark-skinned adopted daughter.

Rove Suggests Former POW McCain Committed Treason and Fathered Child With Black Prostitute.
In 2000, McCain operatives in SC accused Rove of spreading rumors against McCain, such as suggestions that McCain had committed treason while a prisoner of war, and had fathered a child by a black prostitute, according to the New Yorker.

After Rove Denied Role In McCain Whisper Campaign, Reporters Concluded He Was Behind It."

What's So Bad About It?