In an interview with CNN, 1st Lt. Jimmy McCain, son of late Sen. John McCain, said he was angered by former President Donald Trump's visit to Arlington Cemetery and plans to vote for Vice President Kamala Harris.
In the interview, McCain said he had been moving away from the Republican Party and recently changed his registration to Democrat.
Trump's campaign staff reportedly got into an altercation with an official at Arlington National Cemetery during the former president's visit last week. McCain said last week's incident "blew me away."
“I just think that for anyone who’s done a lot of time in their uniform, they just understand that inherently — that it’s not about you there. It’s about these people who gave the ultimate sacrifice in the name of their country," he told CNN.
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The McCain family's disapproval of Trump came to full light in 2018 after Sen. McCain passed away. At his funeral, former Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush provided eulogies, but Trump was not invited. Joe Biden, who was nearly two years removed from the vice presidency, also spoke at McCain's funeral. Obama and Biden were on the 2008 Democratic ticket that defeated McCain in the general election.
Bush won the 2000 GOP presidential primary over McCain.
What the Trump campaign is accused of doing
There are strict federal laws about what can and can't be done at Arlington National Cemetery. One of those laws is that political activities are barred in Section 60 of the cemetery.
Army officials said the Trump campaign was reminded of this law, but proceeded to continue filming Trump's visit. The Trump campaign has noted that the former president was invited by several families of those killed in a 2021 attack on Kabul's airport amid a chaotic U.S. exit from Afghanistan.
"Participants in the August 26th ceremony and the subsequent Section 60 visit were made aware of federal laws, Army regulations and DoD policies, which clearly prohibit political activities on cemetery grounds," the Army said in a statement to Scripps News. "An ANC employee who attempted to ensure adherence to these rules was abruptly pushed aside. Consistent with the decorum expected at ANC, this employee acted with professionalism and avoided further disruption."
Trump's campaign later posted a TikTok video of Trump's visit to the cemetery. The campaign has also said it would release a video of the incident that would prove its version of events, but so far it has not.
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McCain was not pleased to see Trump posing for cameras in front of the gravestones.
“It was a violation,” McCain said. “That mother, that sister, those families, see that — and it’s a painful experience.”
Trump's response to the altercation
Trump told Fox News host Sean Hannity on Tuesday that he did not witness any altercation.
“If you look at just the records, there was no conflict, there was no fight, there was no anything,” Trump said.
Trump added that he posed for photos at the request of the families that invited him.
Sen. McCain's daughter not expressing support for either candidate
Meghan McCain, Sen. McCain's daughter and Jimmy McCain's sister, has repeatedly expressed her dismay for Trump. She also has not said she would vote for Harris, either.
In response to a post on X calling for her to endorse Harris, Meghan McCain responded, "Please stop trying to turn me into a progressive. It’s a fever dream. I’m a life long, generational conservative."
