White House official calls Meghan McCain to apologize for remark about father

A White House official called Meghan McCain on Thursday to apologize after she mocked Sen. John McCain’s (R-Ariz.) cancer diagnosis during a meeting earlier in the day, a source told The Hill.

The Hill first reported Thursday that special assistant Kelly Sadler brushed off the senator’s opposition to President Trump’s nominee for CIA director, Gina Haspel, saying, “It doesn’t matter, he’s dying anyway.”

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Sadler later called the senator’s daughter Meghan McCain to apologize, according to a source.

Meghan McCain has not publicly responded to the comments herself, beyond retweeting her mother, Cindy, who chided the White House official.

“May I remind you my husband has a family, 7 children and 5 grandchildren,” Cindy McCain wrote.

@kellysadler45 May I remind you my husband has a family, 7 children and 5 grandchildren.

— Cindy McCain (@cindymccain) May 10, 2018

Sources told The Hill that they believed Sadler’s comment was intended as a joke, but that it did not go over well with others at the internal White House meeting.

Sadler did not respond to The Hill’s request for comment, and the White House did not make her available for comment.

In a statement, the White House did not deny that Sadler made the remarks, which came amid a discussion of Haspel’s nomination to lead the CIA and McCain’s opposition to it.

“We respect Sen. McCain’s service to our nation, and he and his family are in our prayers during this difficult time,” the White House said.

McCain, 81, has been at home in Arizona in recent months recovering from treatment for brain cancer.

Jonathan Easley and Jordan Fabian contributed