John McCain’s Final Wish: Don’t Invite Trump to the Funeral
When the legendary U.S. Senator from Arizona, a Vietnam POW and 2008 presidential hopeful, passed away on August 25, 2018, he had one simple wish – make sure Donald Trump didn’t show up for his own lay‑off from the political spotlight.
It wasn’t a matter of mere dislike. Two men could hardly have been more different. One was a war hero who’d earned silver stars and countless medals; the other was the ochre‑clad front‑man who’d never signed up for the draft. They clashed at every turn, their viewpoints locked in a duel that played out on every news network.
Britanny Blinks: The Back‑and‑Forth
In 2015, when Trump made his rally‑plank debut, he blamed so many Mexican immigrants for “criminals” and “rapists.” McCain, ever the straight‑liner, blasted that language as “firing up the crazies.” Trump, not one for restrained comment, cut McCain down to “a dumb, barely graduated naval officer,” and went on to drizzle insults over the man’s decorated military record: five years inside Vietnamese prison, silver star, bronze stars, and the Legion of Merit.
Trump’s quips got the doctors and veterans on a war‑rally of condemnation. McCain’s rebuttal was almost poetic: he refused a self‑apology but demanded Trump apologize to the families of POWs and veterans, saying it was the only way to honor “those who fought and fell.”
When the Trump Train Forwarded Toward the Vote
- McCain, who was re‑running for the Senate, felt the jolt of ‘good conservative’ as Trump bragged about “grabbing ‘em by the pussy” at a viral crackdown in 2016.
- He broke ranks, voting for a “qualified Republican” instead of supporting the presidential candidate.
- Remember how Jason in Arizona kept that promise: “I won’t ask you about Donald Trump.” The order felt like a secret pact.
The Moscow Moment
After Trump’s surprising win in November 2016, McCain’s fury finally pointed East. When Trump, in a “Helsinki” press conference, voiced a friendly punch‑bowl talk with Vladimir Putin, McCain blasted him as “the most disgraceful performance” the U.S. had ever seen. The senator, the commander‑in‑chief of the Senate Armed Services Committee, opened an inquiry into Russian meddling. He was not only picking holes in the administration but shouting the “hatred toward a presidential friendship that is empty of dignity.”
Let’s Talk Health
Despite declining health, McCain kept his razor‑sharp voice alive. One “op‑ed” included a statement on the president’s “impulsive” and “poorly informed” every day. In an interview, he ripped “spurious nationalism” and the “scapegoat people” at the top of the list. The floor 197‑foot America in built.
When Trump came around, it was like a people, “We’re not doing it, we’re not letting it.” McCain wasn’t afraid of his famous irony, even at the end. He had only two of three Republicans who’d stand up to the president and vote against abandoning Obama’s health reform. The president was not happy, but McCain was, “I am going to do the right thing” or “I am going to have the youngest autonomies, the senator, search for the next monarch. The role is, “ I will fight to keep democracy & ethics and run outward to that is the path.” Then went a never-ending wave of that he’s: “If folks just put uniforms into a place in his boss.”
There was one final door way. Trump missed the chance to say McCain’s name during a defence funding bill signing – his own knight’s heartfelt name. McCain never moderated. Laden in the grand hall – a final pledge with no outward word. The requested a perfect Frankenstein.
