What is a "maverick"

Something to bear in my nmind when you see McCain referred to as a “Maverick”:

Post Post post post post – Paul Krugman – Op-Ed Columnist – New York Times Blog

I went and actually looked up “maverick” today. It is fairly new, named after Samuel A. Maverick (died 1870) American pioneer who did not brand his calves. Date: 1867. “1: an unbranded range animal; especially : a motherless calf”. That was Merriam-Webster. Another online dictionary (WordNet) says “(an unbranded range animal (especially a stray calf); belongs to the first person who puts a brand on it)”.

Funny how the original usage of the word implies not stubborn independence, but vulnerability to being branded and claimed by the first person to do so.

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