Republican presidential candidates should have spoken up when a crowd at a GOP debate last month booed a gay soldier, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said Sunday.
On CBS’ “Face the Nation,” McCain – when pressed by host Bob Schieffer on the issue – said he believed the candidates should have put a stop to the booing
But he said it’s often difficult to react quickly during a live debate.
"A lot of times, you know, when you're in a debate, you're thinking about what you're going to say and what the question is going to be,” McCain said. “It's hard to react sometimes. I would bet that every Republican on that stage did not agree with that kind of behavior."
Saturday night in a speech to the gay rights advocacy group the Human Rights Campaign President Obama criticized the GOP candidates for not speaking up during the debate.
"We don’t believe in the kind of smallness that says it’s okay for a stage full of political leaders — one of whom could end up being the President of the United States being silent when an American soldier is booed," Obama said.
