I’ve heard this too.
I don’t completely understand what the circumstances are though. When a POW, aren’t you still in the service and still respecting rank of your fellow inmates and still taking orders from your superiors? aren’t your captives supposed to clear anything with the highest ranking prisoner first?
So shouldn’t McCain have told them to go talk to his superior and then do as his superior says?
That’s pretty much how it worked. But I think his superior would have OK’d the deal. Not sure on that.
But his dad was a 4 star Admiral, and the VC wanted the publicity releasing John would have given.
To his credit, NcCain said no. That took guts, IMO.