The incident involving Donald Trump’s campaign staff at Arlington National Cemetery was the final straw for Jimmy McCain, the youngest son of the late Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.
In an interview Tuesday with CNN, McCain said that after last week’s events at the cemetery, he registered as a Democrat and decided to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris this fall.
McCain, who recently returned from a military base in Jordan where three Army reservists were killed in January, said he changed party lines to honor his father and put “country first.”
“I love my family. I care about equal rights for everyone in this country. I care about all of that,” McCain said. “As long as I remained independent, I decided it was time to move on and do what I believe in.”
McCain called Arlington National Cemetery “sacred” and said three generations of his family are buried there. He called Trump’s incident in Arlington a “violation.”
Trump visited the cemetery last week with relatives of victims who died in the Abbey Gate attack on Kabul airport as the US withdrew from Afghanistan three years ago. According to the military, a member of Trump’s team “abruptly pushed aside” a cemetery official so campaign staff could take photos and videos in an area where they are normally prohibited. Trump’s team has disputed the military’s account.
“Arlington Cemetery is to go and pay respect to the men and women who have given their lives for this country,” McCain said. “When you make it political, you take away the respect of the people there.”
McCain also said he has never forgiven Trump for calling his father a “dummy” and that he “wasn’t a war hero” because he was held captive.
“He’s not a war hero,” Trump said in 2015 comments. “He’s a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren’t captured.”
Trump, who never served in the military, then said, “He’s a war hero because he was captured. OK, I believe — maybe he’s a war hero.”
John McCain was tortured and spent five and a half years as a prisoner of war in Vietnam.
Trump campaign press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in response to McCain’s remarks on CNN that “there has been no greater defender” of the military than Trump.
“President Trump rebuilt the military after eight years of decline under Obama/Biden, secured the largest pay raise for our troops in a decade, and became the first leader since Ronald Reagan not to start another war and put our troops at a disadvantage,” he said.
Trump has repeatedly disparaged John McCain over the years, even after the Arizona senator’s death in 2018.
John McCain’s daughter Meghan McCain wrote on Tuesday X that she is still a Republican but will not vote for Trump or Harris in November.
“I have great respect for the political opinions of everyone in my family and I love them all very much,” Meghan McCain wrote. “However, I remain a proud member of the Republican Party and hope for brighter days ahead.”
The Harris campaign promoted McCain’s endorsement for vice president Tuesday in press releases and on social media.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
