MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The 2016 US presidential hopeful Donald Trump has doubled down in his criticism of Senator John McCain in a statement issued Saturday.
Hours earlier at a Q&A session in the Midwest US state of Iowa, Trump slammed McCain’s Vietnam War record, saying "He's not a war hero, he is a war hero because he was captured; I like people who weren’t captured, okay?"
In a statement published on his Facebook account, the Republican candidate who leads all 15 hopefuls in the polls reiterated his criticism.
"He is yet another all talk, no action politician who spends too much time on television and not enough time doing his job and helping the Vets," Trump said.
Fellow GOP candidates and the Republican National Committee were quick to denounce Trump for his remarks, who explained in his statement he was responding to McCain’s characterization of his supporters as "crazies."
Announcing his presidential bid on June 16, 2015, Trump said immigrants from Mexico bring mostly drugs and crime to the United States, characterizing them as "rapists."
Several business entities, including the Macy’s department store and two television stations cut ties with Trump. Moreover, the New York government put Trump’s contracts with the city under review.
Almost 60 percent of Republicans now favor Trump as the next US president, according to a poll released by The Washington Post and ABC News on Wednesday.
