Graham: McCain deserves ‘recognition and respect’
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on Saturday said Donald Trump is not serious about becoming president after he mocked Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) for serving as a prisoner of war.
Graham, a 2016 GOP presidential candidate, argued that Trump, also a White House hopeful, had insulted McCain by taunting his experiences during the Vietnam War.
{mosads}“John McCain and every other POW deserves our recognition and respect,” Graham told host Frank Luntz during the 2015 Family Leadership Summit in Ames, Iowa.
“He was captured but I don’t think he was a loser,” Graham said of McCain’s imprisonment in Vietnam for six years.
“If you want to be commander-in-chief and you are serious about wanting that job, the last thing you’d do is disrespect the people in our armed services,” Graham added.
Trump shocked listeners by joking about McCain’s military service at the 2015 Family Leadership Summit earlier that afternoon.
“He was a war hero because he was captured,” Trump sarcastically quipped about McCain. “I like people who weren’t captured.”
Graham charged Saturday that voters offended by Trump’s remarks could avoid supporting the outspoken billionaire in 2016.
“I believe in democracy, don’t you?” Graham asked Luntz.
“The good people of Iowa, the good people of New Hampshire, the good people of South Carolina are going to figure this out,” he said of Trump’s comments.
“Here’s what they’ll say – ‘Donald Trump, you’re fired,’” Graham quipped, referencing Trump’s catchphrase on his reality television series “The Apprentice.”
Graham also said the heroism displayed by U.S. military personnel usually applies to their families as well.
“Let me tell you who is an American hero – the family that stays behind,” he said. “The spouse that raises the kids while the mom or dad is deployed.”
Trump’s verbal attack on McCain came after Luntz challenged his criticism of the Arizona senator’s political career.
The pollster questioned Trump’s spoken jabs given McCain is a “war hero.”
“I supported McCain for president,” Trump said of McCain’s 2008 White House run.
“He lost and let us down,” he said, arguing he spent $1 million on McCain’s Oval Office bid.
“I’ve never liked him as much after that,” Trump added. “I don’t like losers.”
McCain and Trump have publicly feuded in the media over the latter’s rally against illegal immigration in Phoenix on July 11.
McCain said in an interview published Thursday that Trump “fired up the crazies” during the event.
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