Trump’s latest insult of Senator whom he says is “not a war hero”

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Donald Trump slights Senator John McCain as he signs the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act.

Trump has repeatedly insulted McCain, a pilot who was a POW in North Vietnam for 5 1/2 years, mocking the Senator as “not a war hero” for being weak in “allowing” himself to be captured. Trump’s anger was further fuelled by McCain’s decisive vote last year preventing the repeal of ObamaCare.

Speaking in Fort Drum, New York on Monday, Trump said, “We would not be here for today’s signing ceremony without the dedicated efforts without the dedicated members of Congress who worked so hard to pass the National Defense Authorization Act.”

He namechecked Republican members of Congress, including Elise Stefanik, who represents the district containing Fort Drum; Don Bacon; Dan Donovan; Joe Wilson; and Martha McSally.

But both he and Vice President Mike Pence pointedly declined to mention McCain:

Trump avoided military service during the Vietnam War by claiming bone spurs in his feet.

Hours after the Fort Drum event, Trump launched another verbal attack on McCain, who was diagnosed with glioblastoma, a rare brain cancer, last year. He referred to the ObamaCare vote, “One of our wonderful senators said ‘thumbs down’ at two o’clock in the morning.”

McCain said in a statement:

He did not comment on Trump’s remarks, but his daughter Meghan, a conservative commentator, said Trump had been “gross and pathetic.”