Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) admonished the GOP presidential candidates on Monday for attacking one another.
"Every day that goes by with these attacks on each other is a day that President Obama wins," McCain, the 2008 Republican nominee for president, told MSNBC.
McCain, who endorsed Romney as the nominee in January, has also criticized him for not always focusing on the economy and has called the ongoing GOP primary the
"nastiest fight I've ever seen."Over the weekend, McCain said Romney is "improving dramatically as a candidate."
He repeated that on Monday. "I think he's gotten a lot better, I think he's been more on message," McCain told MSNBC. Romney is delivering a speech on the economy in Chicago on Monday afternoon.
McCain also seemed to reference the fact that Romney has struggled to appeal to some branches of the Republican party.
"It hasn't been easy," he said. "The Republican party's a very diverse party. We saw the rise of the Tea Parties in 2010. It's a tougher job, but I think he'll be a better candidate in the general election."
McCain blamed super-PACs for largely running negative ads and the candidates for getting too personal in their comments.
He stressed that Tuesday's primary vote in Illinois would be "critical" for Romney and Rick Santorum. McCain said a big win by Romney would help "marginalize" his competition and restore his position as the GOP's presumptive nominee.
