GOP senator says McCain 'partially to blame' for flag drama

Had the late Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) not been so "outspoken," the U.S. flag above the White House wouldn't have spent the last 48 hours being yanked up and down, Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla.) said Monday.

McCain died Saturday at 81, a year after announcing he had been diagnosed with brain cancer and one day after his family said he was no longer seeking medical treatment. The flag above the White House was at half-staff Saturday evening, but shortly after midnight Sunday, it was brought back up. After some public outrage, the White House lowered the flag once again on Monday afternoon, with President Trump saying in a statement he "signed a proclamation to fly the flag of the United States at half-staff until the day of [McCain's] interment."

Inhofe, after saying several times McCain was his "hero," told reporters: "Frankly, I think that John McCain is partially to blame for that because he is very outspoken. He disagreed with the president in certain areas and wasn't too courteous about it." Inhofe, who served on the Senate Armed Services Committee with McCain, said he had "no opinions" about Trump's long history of poking at McCain, including saying the Vietnam War POW wasn't a war hero. "Oh, let them have their thing," he said. "He was my hero."

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

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.

Sign up