Following Donald Trump’s inflammatory remarks on Saturday suggesting that Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) was only a “war hero” because he was a prisoner of war, McCain on Monday said that Trump does not owe him an apology, but should address other veterans and their families.
“He may owe an apology to the families of those who have sacrificed in conflict and those who have undergone the prison experience in serving their country,” McCain said on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”
“There are so many men and some women who served and sacrificed and happened to be held prisoner, and somehow to denigrate that in any way their service I think is offensive to most of our veterans,” McCain continued.
McCain said that he has received a “flood” of calls from veterans who are “not happy” with Trump’s comments.
When asked by “Morning Joe” co-host Joe Scarborough about reports that Trump avoided the draft for the Vietnam War in 1968, McCain did not criticize the real estate mogul for not serving in the military.
Scarborough also asked McCain if he regrets referring to Trump supporters in Arizona as “crazies,” a comment Trump has called on the senator to apologize for.
“You know my state is a very dynamic and divisive state, and we’ve got lots of arguments and lots of debates going on. I have hundreds of town hall meetings all over Arizona, and I’m called crazy by the people that come there. I thought it was a term of endearment,” McCain replied, chuckling.
Since his initial comments about McCain on Saturday, Trump has refused to apologize and insisted that he believes McCain is a war hero.
Watch the interview with McCain via MSNBC:
… and who’s going to apologize to John Kerry?
And all the other purple heart winners?
…and who’s going to apologize to Obama over that birth certificate nonsense?
Gee, did McCain and the media say the same thing when similar offensive attacks were said about John Kerry and his war record (having earned the Purple Heart) by GOP-friendly groups in 2004? And why doesn’t any media question McCain on that GOP hypocrisy? Oh silly me, many in the media considered McCain their president (see “Gregory, David” for starters).
The GOP base’s capacity to glorify all things military is only exceeded by their bigotry.
And who’s going to apologize to the all the other Silver Star recipients?
To be fair, McCain did speak out against the Swift Boating, but everyone blew it off as the fuming of a man angry with Bush for the South Carolina smear and a close friend with Kerry’s to boot.