PHOENIX — After silence on Friday following the announcement by Sen. John McCain's family that he had ended medical treatment for his battle with cancer, President Donald Trump tweeted on Saturday his "deepest sympathies and respect" to the senator's family.
The Arizona senior Senator died Saturday, 13 months after he was diagnosed with an aggressive form of brain cancer. McCain was 81.
"My deepest sympathies and respect go out to the family of Senator John McCain," the president's full tweet stated. "Our hearts and prayers are with you!"
Trump tweeted several times on Friday but not about McCain ending his treatment.
The two have had a publicly rocky relationship over the past few years. When Trump was running for President in 2015, he said this about McCain losing to former President Barack Obama in the 2008 Election: "I don't like losers." Trump went on to say, "He's not a war hero. He's a war hero because he was captured. I like people that weren't captured."
In May, McCain said he didn't want the president to attend his funeral.
McCain’s wife, Cindy McCain, and daughter Meghan McCain have stepped up several times to defend him from Trump’s attacks.
