The youngest son of the late Sen. John McCain announced he will vote for Kamala Harris while rebuking Donald Trump for the incident at Arlington National Cemetery.
Jimmy McCain is just the latest in a long line of McCains who have served in the military. His grandfather and great-grandfather, both Navy admirals, are buried at Arlington.
McCain, 36, lashed out at Trump, whose visit to the cemetery on the third anniversary of the Abbey Gate terror attack continues to have repercussions, following a report of a physical altercation involving a member of Trump’s campaign staff there.
“The people who are buried there have no opinion,” he told CNN on Tuesday.
‘The purpose of Arlington Cemetery is to show respect for the men and women who have given their lives for this country. When you make it political, you take away respect for the people who are there.
“I understand you were invited. Please show your respect and leave. There is no need to film it,” he said.
Jimmy McCain (with his mother Cindy and sister Meghan McCain) criticized the conduct of Donald Trump’s campaign at Arlington Cemetery, calling for “showing respect and leaving”
“It just blows my mind,” McCain told the network. “Those men and women who are lying there have no other option” than to become the backdrop for a political campaign, he said.
“I think anyone who’s spent a lot of time in the military understands that it’s not about you, it’s about these people who gave the ultimate sacrifice on behalf of their country,” said McCain, an Army intelligence officer who has served for 17 years in the military.
McCain recently changed his party affiliation from independent to Democrat. Until now he had stayed out of politics and made his decision on personal terms.
“I think Kamala Harris and Tim Walz represent a group of people who are going to help make this country better, who are going to move us forward. And that’s what really matters at the end of the day: voting with your heart, voting based on how you feel about the future, and that’s how I feel.”
Her mother, Cindy McCain, endorsed Joe Biden in 2020, despite her father’s long ties to the Republican Party and his time as the party’s presidential candidate in 2008.
Trump visited the cemetery on the third anniversary of the Abbey Gate attack in which 13 Americans were killed. His campaign says he was invited to be there by relatives. His campaign later released a video of his visit to the cemetery.
Trump criticized and mocked McCain’s prisoner of war status, saying, “I like people who weren’t captured.”
Trump’s trip to the cemetery continues a week after what happened
His online appearance came on a day when Trump revived the Arlington Cemetery controversy in a post denying reports that a campaign aide had fought with a cemetery official over rules prohibiting political use of the site.
“There was no conflict or ‘fight’ at Arlington National Cemetery last week. It was a fabricated story by Comrade Kamala and her disinformation team,” Trump posted on his Truth Social Site, a week after the incident was reported.
Trump blamed Vice President Kamala Harris, saying there was “no fighting.”
“She made it all up to make up for the fact that she and Sleepy Joe have BLOOD ON THEIR HANDS over the INCOMPETENT withdrawal from Afghanistan. THE MOST SHAMEFUL DAY IN AMERICAN HISTORY!!!” Trump posted. He said it “couldn’t have been a more enjoyable time. And there was no fighting or trouble, just in the heads of those destroying our Country!”
An Army spokesman said in an official statement after the incident that “participants in the Aug. 26 ceremony and subsequent Section 60 visit were informed of federal laws, Army regulations and Department of Defense policies, which clearly prohibit political activities on cemetery grounds. An ANC employee who attempted to ensure compliance with these rules was abruptly removed.”
During his televised interview, host Jake Tapper pointed out to McCain that his future father once aired a campaign ad that included a video of himself touring the cemetery, but immediately took it down and apologized.
Trump had a strained relationship with McCain and mocked the prisoner of war status that made him a national hero, saying in 2015 that “I like people who weren’t captured.”
The younger McCain’s statement about Trump comes as Harris’ campaign seeks to court a small group of Republicans who might switch sides by featuring a group of them as speakers at the Democratic National Convention.
Former Republican Sen. Pat Toomey told CNBC on Tuesday that he will not vote for either Trump or Harris, citing Jan. 6 as the reason he will not back the Republican.