“This idea that this president or his people reached out to me is patently false,” he said. “To somehow allege that I didn’t somehow respond to their overtures, that’s patently false. That’s their narrative, and I understand their narrative, but it’s not substantiated by the facts.”

McCain pointed out that Obama invited him to the White House in 2009 to discuss immigration reform.

“I said, ‘I’d love to join you,’ and never heard from him,” McCain said.

A White House spokeswoman declined to comment.