The Christian Science Monitor

In polarized times, praise for McCain becomes grounds for partisan sniping

When Arizona Sen. John McCain died on Saturday, his friend and fellow Republican, Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, tweeted out some words of respect and praise for a “great American,” a terrific senator, friend, and mentor. “May God be with this hero who has earned his rest.”

She was “amazed” by some of the responses she got – and not in a good way.

“I made the mistake of reading some of the comments,” she told reporters earlier this week. “They were just horrible.”

“Traitor,” “warmonger,” and “imperialist” are some of the sharp criticisms of the late senator flying around social media, from partisans on both sides. On the conservative news site Breitbart, comments about the senator

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