That's why I said it's mostly political. McCain wasn't really ranting at Welsh; he was ranting at the Senate. As KenV says, the F-35 is coming and there's no stopping it. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if, prior to the hearing, Sen. McCain said to CSAF, "General, I'm going to give you a hard time today, just so you know!" Who better to put on the record as saying he'd "prefer to keep both", but we "aren't resourced for that."
<Cue congressional navel gazing>