Sen. John McCain on Monday tried to tamp down the controversy between the White House and the Gold Star family of one of the soldiers killed in Niger earlier this month.
McCain, making an appearance on "The View" program to join his daughter and talk show co-host, Meghan McCain, for her birthday, addressed the war of words over one of the Green Berets who was killed in the line of duty, Sgt. La David Johnson.
"We should not be fighting about a brave American who lost his life serving his country," McCain said on the show. "That should not be the topic of discussion in America today."
Details are still murky as to how Johnson and three other soldiers were killed in Niger when many lawmakers have publicly stated that they didn't know the U.S. had any kind of military operation in the African country.
"Americans should know what's going on in Niger," McCain said. "We should know what caused the death of four brave young Americans. We should know what kind of operations we're engaged in."
McCain gave a gift to Meghan, a photo of the two of them atop a mountain after a recent day of hiking. McCain was diagnosed with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer over the summer.
Meghan McCain was asked the biggest lesson she learned from her dad.
"That character matters. That believing something greater than yourself will always be important. To really respect and love America and the people who sacrifice for us, and that America has always been great and that it's always going to be great," Meghan McCain said.