Those were cited in the context of his being a maverick. The fact is, “Clean Gene” showed LBJ that he couldn’t win the nomination, and he dropped out of the race. RFK entered the race, was on his way to the nomination, was assassinated, and Humphrey wound up the nominee.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eugene_McCarthy#The_1968_campaign
“Despite strong showings in several primaries, McCarthy garnered only 23 percent of the delegates at the 1968 Democratic National Convention, largely due to the control of state party organizations over the delegate selection process.”
(some things never change, eh?)
Still, the story reads like they are in admiration of a guy that is a total, scummy prick. One can play hard ball without being a complete slimy rectum.