The two senators are Trump’s most persistent intraparty critics, lashing him for his views on trade, immigration and foreign policy. And perhaps most notably, they seem to get under Trump’s skin — the new president fired off a tweet in response to their latest criticism, calling the pair “weak on immigration” along with several other barbs.
But, so far, they’ve managed to avoid getting embroiled in the kind of personal feud that Trump relishes.
The 80-year-old McCain, who was just reelected to another six-year term by a wide margin, declined to mix it up with Trump just 24 hours after drawing his ire. Asked about the Tweet, the Arizona senator said: “I don’t pay much attention, to tell you the truth.”
The pair’s disciplined approach appears to be an effort to hold onto their leverage for when they really think they need to take a stand against Trump — or work with him to achieve common goals such as a larger defense budget.
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