Meghan McCain Says 'This Never Stops Being Incredibly Painful' as Trump Denies 'Loser' Comments

"No one is more acutely aware of how vile and disgusting Trump has been to my family," The View co-host wrote on Twitter

From left: Sen. John McCain, Meghan McCain and President Donald Trump. Photo: NBC via Getty Images; Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic; Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images

As difficult as she said it was, Meghan McCain found herself on Thursday in the familiar position of speaking out about her dead father after the president's reported disparagement.

That night, Donald Trump denied a new story from The Atlantic, citing sources, that claimed he called slain U.S. soldiers "losers" and "suckers" during a 2018 trip to Paris when he canceled a visit to the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery.

"Why should I go to that cemetery? It’s filled with losers," Trump reportedly told senior staff members the morning the trip was scheduled to take place.

The Atlantic article also touched on Trump's repeated criticisms of the late Sen. John McCain, both during the 2016 campaign and after McCain died of brain cancer in August 2018.

The two politicians had a history of bad blood and sharp disagreements before the Arizona lawmaker's death.

"We’re not going to support that loser’s funeral," Trump reportedly said to senior staffers of Sen. McCain after he died, according to The Atlantic.

Meghan, 35, tweeted about grief shortly after the report made headlines, though she didn't directly mention the "loser" comment.

"I just got through two years without my Dad a few days ago. The loss is still incredibly painful and raw," she wrote Thursday night. "No one is more acutely aware of how vile and disgusting Trump has been to my family, it is still hard to understand - America knows who this man is..."

"This never stops being incredibly painful, triggering, and it rips off new layers of grief that wreak havoc on my life," The View co-host continued. "I wouldn't wish any of it on my worst enemy. I truly pray for peace for my family, our grief, and for this country."

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Meghan also retweeted a post from Fox News contributor Johnny Jones that read: "Regardless if you believe the @TheAtlantic story or @realDonaldTrump tweets refuting it. I’d love to see them both/us all let John McCain Rest In Peace and honor. Continuing to involve him in this mess is the true dishonor to his legacy."

Speaking with reporters on Thursday, Trump denied the Atlantic story, calling it a "disgrace." He claimed that the Secret Service would not let him go to the cemetery because of rainy weather conditions.

A White House spokeswoman called it "offensive & patently false. [Trump] holds the military in the highest regard."

On Twitter, Trump also denied calling Sen. McCain a "loser" though he admitted "I was never a big fan of John McCain."

Trump has previously called the late senator "horrible" — and in 2015 said he was a "loser," given his failed presidential bids — and Trump derided him even after his death two years ago, while Meghan has said she feels compelled to respond.

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During a March 2019 episode of The View, the co-hosts discussed Trump's repeated attacks on Sen. McCain, who had been a political rival in life but by then had already been dead for several months.

"[Trump] spends his weekend obsessing over great men because — he knows it and I know it and all of you know it — he will never be a great man," Meghan said at the time. "My father was his kryptonite in life, he’s his kryptonite in death."

"All of us have love and families, and when my father was alive up until adulthood we would spend our time together cooking, hiking, fishing, really celebrating life, and I think it’s because he almost died," she said, referring to her dad's time as a prisoner of war.

She added: "And I just thought, your life is spent on weekends not with your family, not with your friends, but obsessing — obsessing over great men you could never live up to."