Reminder: John McCain refused an early release from prison camp

Donald Trump once again landed himself in hot water Saturday, this time when he questioned whether former Navy pilot and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) is a true war hero.
"I like people who weren't captured," Trump said.
It's a good time to revisit the full story of the 5.5 years McCain spent being held captive and even tortured in North Vietnam, during which guards actually asked him if he wanted to leave early because he was an admiral's son. Here's how it went down when "The Cat," the commander of the prison camps, offered him early release, according to a gripping Arizona Republic profile from 2007:
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
McCain realized that the Code of Conduct gave him no choice. [Everett] Alvarez, who was being held elsewhere, was supposed to be the first man released."I just knew it wasn't the right thing to do," he said. "I knew that they wouldn't have offered it to me if I hadn't been the son of an admiral."I just didn't think it was the honorable thing to do."...McCain calmly told The Cat that the prisoners must be released in the order they were captured, starting with Alvarez. [The Arizona Republic]
Trump, who avoided serving in the Vietnam War through four student deferments and one medical one, later tried to clarify his remarks.
"If a person is captured, they're a hero as far as I'm concerned," he said. "I don't like the job John McCain is doing in the Senate because he is not taking care of our veterans."
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Julie Kliegman is a freelance writer based in New York. Her work has appeared in BuzzFeed, Vox, Mental Floss, Paste, the Tampa Bay Times and PolitiFact. Her cats can do somersaults.
-
Alice Munro: should we still read a fallen saint?From The Magazine Claims author excused abuse of daughter at hands of stepfather has readers 'sifting sentences for missed clues'
By The Week UK Published
-
Lucy Letby: a miscarriage of justice?The Explainer Since Letby's conviction for killing seven babies at a neonatal unit, experts have expressed grave doubts about the case
By The Week UK Published
-
5 game-changing cartoons about outdated Republican tacticsCartoons Artists take on bumper stickers, greatest hits, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Puffed rice and yoga: inside the collapsed tunnel where Indian workers await rescueSpeed Read Workers trapped in collapsed tunnel are suffering from dysentery and anxiety over their rescue
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
More than 2,000 dead following massive earthquake in MoroccoSpeed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Mexico's next president will almost certainly be its 1st female presidentSpeed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
North Korea's Kim to visit Putin in eastern Russia to discuss arms sales for Ukraine war, U.S. saysSpeed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Gabon's military leader sworn in following coup in latest African uprisingSpeed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Nobody seems surprised Wagner's Prigozhin died under suspicious circumstancesSpeed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Western mountain climbers allegedly left Pakistani porter to die on K2Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
'Circular saw blades' divide controversial Rio Grande buoys installed by Texas governorSpeed Read
By Peter Weber Published