Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) at a Phoenix town hall meeting on Monday said he would not stop using the term “illegal immigrant.”

“Someone who crosses our borders illegally is here illegally,” McCain said after he was asked by one questioner to “please drop the ‘I-word’” and instead refer to such immigrants as “undocumented,” according to a report in the Arizona Republic.

“You can call it whatever you want to, but it’s illegal. I think there’s a big difference between someone who does something that’s illegal and someone who’s undocumented. I’ll continue to call it illegal,” the senator added.