President Trump claimed credit for John McCain’s funeral on Wednesday and complained about not receiving a “thank you” for the somber event — even though he had nothing to do with it.
For a second day in a row, Trump went after the late Arizona senator for various familiar grievances, including the Vietnam War hero’s no vote on repealing Obamacare in 2017 and his alerting the FBI to a damning dossier about the President’s alleged ties to Russia.
But, speaking at a U.S. Army tank manufacturing plant in Lima, Ohio, Trump also tried out a new anti-McCain tirade that was hardly accurate.
“I gave him the kind of funeral that he wanted, which as President I had to approve,” Trump said. “I don’t care about this. I didn’t get thank you. That’s OK. We sent him on the way, but I wasn’t a fan of John McCain.”
The audience remained quiet during Trump’s McCain-bashing monologue.
It was not immediately clear what the President was talking about, and a White House spokesman did not return a request for comment.
Trump authorized the use of Air Force 2 to transport McCain’s body from Arizona to Washington, D.C., after his death, but the President had nothing to do with his state funeral at the U.S. Capitol on Aug. 31.
Rather, McCain’s lying in state was approved via a resolution passed by the Senate.
Trump was notably asked by the McCain family to not attend the late senator’s funeral.
The President’s latest attack against the dead senator prompted even some of his most loyal supporters to speak out against him.
South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham — a staunch Trump ally who used to be one of McCain’s closest friend in Congress — told reporters that “the President’s comments about Sen. McCain hurt him more than they hurt the legacy of Sen. McCain.”
Some military veterans were not as measured in their responses.
“Every single senator should speak up regarding their former colleague, Senator McCain. No matter the side. They also should censure POTUS on his latest remarks,” retired U.S. Army Gen. Mark Hertling tweeted. “Anything else is cowardly and speaks to a lack of honor.”
