“I listened closely to what Trump said and he did not say McCain was not a war hero. However, this is a free country and Mr. Trump has the right to say whatever he believes”.
***********
As for the first part of your comment, Cruz couldn’t have so replied because Donald DID SAY that McCain was not a war hero, lest there would be no controversy. Eh? (Yes, Donald did ultimately back down and say that McCain was a war hero.)
In the end, both Trump and Cruz both said McCain was a war hero.
Additionally, unlike the others, Cruz did not denounce Trump or call upon him to apologize— which is why Cruz is being criticized by the WSJ.
For those who dislike Cruz, find another reason to come down on him-— here, he’s been the only GOP guy not to abandon Trump and he’s taking hits for it.
{Trump: “(McCain) insulted me and he insulted everybody in that room. And I said somebody should run against John McCain, who has been, in my opinion, not so hot. And I supported him for president. I raised $1 million for him. That’s a lot of money. I supported him, he lost, he let us down. But he lost and I never liked him much after that ‘cause I don’t like losers. But, but — Frank, Frank, let me get to it.”
Luntz: “He’s a war hero. He’s a war hero … “
Trump: “He’s not a war hero … “
Luntz: “He’s war hero.”
Trump: “He is a war hero … “
Luntz: “Five and half years in a Vietnamese prison camp … “
Trump: “He’s a war hero because he was captured. I like people that weren’t captured. So he’s a war hero … “
Luntz: “Do you agree with that?”
Trump: “He’s a war hero because he was captured, okay? I believe, perhaps, he’s a war hero. But right now he said some very bad things about a lot of people. So what I said is John McCain, I disagree with him that these people aren’t crazy.”}
Written transcript of the comment.