Messages of support for ailing John McCain stream in from both sides of the aisle

Meghan DeMaria
Sen. John McCain (Photo: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg)
Sen. John McCain (Photo: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg)

After Sen. John McCain’s family shared Friday that McCain won’t continue with treatment for his brain cancer, fellow politicians and political voices are sharing words of encouragement for the senator.

McCain was diagnosed with a brain tumor last July. The tumor, known as a glioblastoma, is a particularly difficult form of cancer to treat; 90 percent of adults with the disease survive for less than 24 months after diagnosis.

“The progress of disease and the inexorable advance of age render their verdict,” McCain’s family said in the statement. “With his usual strength of will, he has now chosen to discontinue medical treatment. Our family is immensely grateful for the support and kindness of all his caregivers over the last year, and for the continuing outpouring of concern and affection from John’s many friends and associates, and the many thousands of people who are keeping him in their prayers. God bless and thank you all.”

Since the announcement, tributes for McCain have poured in from all quarters, including high-ranking Republicans who sometimes disagreed with his political stances, such as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Speaker Paul Ryan, and his 2008 presidential campaign running mate, Sarah Palin.

Democrats who don’t necessarily agree with McCain’s policies reached out to honor the senator too, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and human rights activist Andrew Stroehlein. Mo Elleithee, executive director of Georgetown University’s Institute of Politics and Public Service, shared a photo of himself at age 16 alongside McCain. “Even when I worked against u, you were a role model,” Elleithee wrote in his tweet.

Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy also praised McCain in a tweet, commending McCain for his apology for not taking a stronger stance about the confederate flag.

And Mike Collier, who’s running for lieutenant governor of Texas, tweeted that McCain’s “heroism transcends politics.”

Still, not everyone is honoring McCain’s political legacy. Notably, President Trump hasn’t tweeted a message of support for McCain, though he’s been quite active on Twitter in the past few days. As the Washington Post pointed out, Trump has previously said that McCain is “not a war hero.”

Fox News host Tomi Lahren also criticized McCain this week, calling him a “RINO,” or “Republican in name only.” Lahren hasn’t tweeted or commented about McCain since his family’s update about his treatment.

It sounds as if McCain is making the most of this time with his family, though, so he may not be worried about Trump’s lack of comment. Back in October, McCain appeared on The View, where he said that what he’s going through “does make you appreciate every minute of every hour of every day.”

“We should all thank God for every minute because we are blessed,” McCain said. “And we’re blessed to be in the greatest nation on Earth.”

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