USA TODAY International Edition
McCain: Say sorry to vets
Trump shouldn’t exit race, senator says, but POWs deserve better
John McCain says Donald Trump doesn’t owe him an apology but should express sorrow to other prisoners of war and their families.
“I think 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 on Monday. Declining by and large to mix it up with Trump, McCain said, “I’m not a hero,” but he did serve with many heroes in Vietnam and they should not be denigrated.
Trump’s weekend comments about McCain — that he is not a hero “because he was captured” and “I like people who weren’t captured” — have prompted calls for him to exit the Republican presidential race. McCain said he doesn’t think Trump should leave the race, but he is interested to see how his comments affect his standing after many polls showed Trump at or near the top of the 2016 Republican field. Trump, who had no plans to apologize to McCain, said he is angry with the Arizona senator for describing Trump backers as “crazies.” The billionaire businessman said McCain and other lawmakers have not done enough to help veterans, nor have they addressed the issue that animates many of his supporters: illegal immigration.
On MSNBC, McCain said Arizona is a diverse political state, “and we have got lots of arguments and lots of debates going on.” He said the term “crazies” refers to their passion, not their mental state. “I thought it was a term of endearment.”
Trump addressed the controversy on Twitter on Monday, saying the issue was “no longer about John McCain” but rather about “our horribly treated vets.”
Dan Caldwell, legislative director of Concerned Veterans for America, denounced Trump’s attacks on McCain. “Trump has no understanding of what military service entails or what POWs, especially those in Vietnam, have endured,” Caldwell said.