Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) on Monday asked members of President Trump
Donald John TrumpTrump nominates ambassador to Turkey Trump heads to Mar-a-Lago after signing bill to avert shutdown CNN, MSNBC to air ad turned down by Fox over Nazi imagery MORE's Cabinet to lower the flags outside their respective department buildings to half staff to honor the late Sen. John McCain
John Sidney McCainMark Kelly's campaign raises over M in days after launching Senate bid The Hill's 12:30 Report — Presented by Kidney Care Partners — Lawmakers wait for Trump's next move on border deal Mark Kelly launches Senate bid in Arizona MORE (R-Ariz.) after White House flags returned to full staff.
Lieu tweeted the same message at three Cabinet officials who served in the military: Secretary of Defense James Mattis
James Norman MattisTrump nominates ambassador to Turkey Overnight Defense: Trump declares border emergency | .6B in military construction funds to be used for wall | Trump believes Obama would have started war with North Korea | Pentagon delivers aid for Venezuelan migrants Top US general: Trump wrong on Syria pullout, ISIS defeat MORE, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
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"You served on active duty. As a nation mourns McCain, it would be appropriate to lower the flag to half staff at all @StateDept buildings. I respectfully request you give that order, regardless of the views of @realDonaldTrump. It is the honorable thing to do," Lieu tweeted, sending a separate message to each Cabinet official.
Dear @SecPompeo: You served on active duty. As a nation mourns McCain, it would be appropriate to lower the flag to half staff at all @StateDept buildings. I respectfully request you give that order, regardless of the views of @realDonaldTrump. It is the honorable thing to do. https://t.co/yIllKANhMq
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) August 27, 2018
Dear @SecretaryZinke: You served on active duty. As a nation mourns McCain, it would be appropriate to lower the flag to half staff at all @Interior buildings. I respectfully request you give that order, regardless of the views of @realDonaldTrump. It is the honorable thing to do https://t.co/HnxooCDRfP
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) August 27, 2018
Dear #SecDef: You served on active duty. As a nation mourns McCain, it would be appropriate to lower the flag to half staff at all @DeptofDefense buildings. I respectfully request you give that order, regardless of the views of @realDonaldTrump. It is the honorable thing to do. https://t.co/KSHnUuYPPc
— Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) August 27, 2018
Flags at the White House returned to full staff early Monday, less than 48 hours after McCain died.
Several reporters and commentators quickly noted that flags in the past have remained lowered to honor lawmakers and major public figures until their funerals.
Joe Heim, a Washington Post reporter, posted a photo on Twitter showing that the flag outside the Department of Energy remained at half staff on Monday morning, while the flag just down the road at the Department of Agriculture was back at full staff.
Even the cabinet is closed confused about honoring McCain. Flag at Energy is half staff. At Agriculture, across the street, flag is at full staff. pic.twitter.com/gs0fr85kcr
— Joe Heim (@JoeHeim) August 27, 2018
McCain died Saturday at age 81 a little more than a year after being diagnosed with an aggressive form of brain cancer. Even after his diagnosis, he remained one of Trump's most outspoken Republican critics.
McCain reportedly did not want Trump to attend his funeral, instead requesting that former Presidents Obama and George W. Bush deliver eulogies.
During the 2016 campaign, Trump ridiculed McCain's status as a war hero. In recent months, Trump has regularly chided McCain over his decision to vote against a GOP effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act, effectively killing the measure.
Trump reportedly nixed a draft statement from the White House calling McCain a "hero" after the senator's death. Trump instead issued a tweet offering his sympathies to McCain's family.
A number of other administration officials issued their own statements via Twitter, including Pompeo, Vice President Pence, White House counselor Kellyanne Conway
Kellyanne Elizabeth ConwayWhite House seeks to clarify Trump remarks on emergency Trump says he 'didn't need to' declare emergency but wanted 'faster' action Trump dismisses Ann Coulter after criticism: 'I hardly know her' MORE and Trump's attorney, Rudy Giuliani.
McCain, a former naval aviator, is scheduled to lie in the Arizona Capitol on Wednesday and then the U.S. Capitol on Friday. He will be buried at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., on Sunday.
