John McCain’s mother dies at 108

Roberta McCain, the mother of late Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), has died at age 108, the family announced Monday.

Cindy McCain, the senator’s widow, announced the death in a tweet.  

“It is with great sadness that I announce the death of my wonderful Mother In-law, Roberta McCain,” Cindy McCain tweeted. “I couldn’t have asked for a better role model or a better friend. She joins her husband Jack, her son John and daughter Sandy.”

It is with great sadness that I announce the death of my wonderful Mother In-law, Roberta McCain. I couldn’t have asked for a better role model or a better friend. She joins her husband Jack, her son John and daughter Sandy.

— Cindy McCain (@cindymccain) October 12, 2020

Roberta McCain was involved with her son’s presidential campaign in 2008 when he was the Republican nominee, traveling with the campaign despite being 96 at the time.

“My mother was raised to be a strong, determined woman who thoroughly enjoyed life, and always tried to make the most of her opportunities,” the Arizona Republican wrote in one of his books. “She was encouraged to accept, graciously and with good humor, the responsibilities and sacrifices her choices have required of her. I am grateful to her for the strengths she taught me by example.”

Roberta McCain, born Feb. 7, 1912, met John S. McCain Jr. while she was a freshman at University of Southern California. They eloped to Tijuana, Mexico, and later had three children, according to The Washington Post. 

Her husband became a four-star Navy admiral who led the U.S. invasion of the Dominican Republic in 1965 and commanded troops in the Pacific during the Vietnam War.

Sen. John McCain followed in his father’s footsteps by becoming a Navy pilot during the Vietnam War. When his parents learned he was shot down over Hanoi, his mother wrote a letter to then-President Lyndon B. Johnson, according to the Post.

“As the parent of a son who was shot down in Hanoi last week and is now a prisoner of war, I wonder if you are interested to know that both my husband and I back you and your policies 100 percent in Vietnam,” she wrote. “One reads so much of other opinions, that I just hope that you and the people really making the sacrifice believe in our country and in you. May God bless you and keep you strong in your courage and convictions.”

The late Arizona senator was isolated and tortured for 5 1/2 years before returning to the U.S.

Roberta McCain, at age 106, attended her son’s 2018 memorial services in Washington, D.C., in a wheelchair after he died of an aggressive form of brain cancer at 81 years old.