Sen. John McCain withdraws support from Donald Trump

Sen. John McCain on Saturday formally withdrew his support of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, whose presidential campaign was wilting in an unprecedented crisis related to his past use of vulgar terms about women and other misogynistic comments.

McCain, an Arizona Republican who was the 2008 GOP presidential nominee, had been backing Trump as the nominee despite a long history of personal acrimony. McCain this year is seeking a sixth Senate term.

"I have wanted to support the candidate our party nominated. He was not my choice, but as a past nominee, I thought it important I respect the fact that Donald Trump won a majority of the delegates by the rules our party set," McCain said in a lengthy written statement. "I thought I owed his supporters that deference.

Montini: Did McCain dump Trump to save himself?

"But Donald Trump’s behavior this week, concluding with the disclosure of his demeaning comments about women and his boasts about sexual assaults, make it impossible to continue to offer even conditional support for his candidacy. (McCain's wife) Cindy, with her strong background in human rights and respect for women fully agrees with me in this."

McCain joined a large group of establishment Republicans in Arizona and nationally who are jettisoning Trump in the wake of the 2005 recording disclosed Friday by the Washington Post. In the recording, Trump discussed women in crude ways, even trivializing groping.

The remarks, coming on the heels of Trump's comments about the appearance of a former Miss Universe after the first presidential debate, led some prominent Republicans to suggest that Trump should step down as nominee, the only way under party rules that he could be replaced. 

For Republicans on the November ballot like McCain, their responses have immediate political implications: They could alienate their own party's Trump supporters even as they continue to take barbs from Democrats who said they either waited too long or weren't forceful enough in their reaction.

Ducey condemns Trump; Brewer stands by candidate

McCain said he and his wife will not vote for the celebrity billionaire Trump or former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the Democratic nominee, but instead will "write in the name of some good conservative Republican who is qualified to be president."

McCain reiterated a point he made Friday that Trump "alone bears the burden of his conduct and alone should suffer the consequences," a suggestion that down-ticket Republicans such as himself on the ballot should not be blamed.

"In addition to my well known differences with Donald Trump on public policy issues, I have raised questions about his character after his comments on Prisoners of War, the Khan Gold Star family, Judge Curiel and earlier inappropriate comments about women," McCain said. "Just this week, he made outrageous statements about the innocent men in the Central Park Five case."

Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick, D-Ariz., McCain's opponent in Arizona's Senate race, said McCain's gesture comes too late.

Trump, 'Obamacare' cast shadows over McCain vs. Kirkpatrick Senate race

“John McCain showed today he only cares about one thing: his political career. His decision is nothing more than a political calculation," Kirkpatrick said Saturday in a written statement. "It's been more than 24 hours since Trump’s comments were released. If it takes a full day for McCain to decide something is inappropriate, then he clearly doesn't have the leadership Arizonans need. He has abandoned his principles and changed his positions whenever he thought it would help prolong his 33-year career in Washington."

McCain "missed the chance to show political courage and lead," she added.

The four public polls released since McCain's Aug. 30 victory in the Republican Senate primary have shown him with double-digit leads over Kirkpatrick, but his rejection of Trump likely will generate backlash from Trump's diehard Republican backers.

Other Republicans react

Former Republican Gov. Jan Brewer, among Trump's most vocal Arizona supporters, stood by her candidate. 

"I am repulsed by the detestable language used by Donald Trump. It was wrong, inappropriate and disgusting," Brewer said in a statement on Facebook. "However, withdrawing my support from Donald Trump - our Republican nominee - would simply not be doing the right thing for our country. There is too much at stake if we elect Hillary Clinton: The future of our Supreme Court, our country's national security, securing our border, improving our economy and bringing back jobs to America."

But McCain was far from the only Republican disavowing Trump on Saturday.

Some of Trump's most influential Arizona supporters — state GOP Chairman Robert Graham, state Treasurer Jeff DeWit and Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio  — remained silent. But minutes after McCain announced he would not vote for Trump, other Arizona GOP leaders also issued harsh remarks.

Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., never endorsed Trump and has been a high-profile critic of his campaign's tone and tenor and policy proposals. Flake said in a Twitter message that Trump "needs to withdraw from the race."

Gov. Doug Ducey called Trump's statements "insulting and terribly demeaning to women."

"I disavow them 100 percent," he said of Trump's remarks. "Angela and I have three boys and we work hard every day to raise them the right way and to have the utmost respect for women. We should demand the same from our leaders, especially those who want to occupy the White House, the highest office in the land."

Ducey spokesman Daniel Scarpinato did not immediately respond to The Arizona Republic's question about whether Ducey was withdrawing his endorsement of Trump.

House candidates scramble

U.S. Rep. Martha McSally, R-Ariz., expressed her dismay at the comments, but remained inscrutable on whether she plans to support her party's nominee.

“Trump's comments are disgusting. Joking about sexual assault is unacceptable. I'm appalled,” she wrote on Twitter.

McSally’s comment came hours after a meeting at The Republic in which she refused to say whether she recommended voters in her southern district support the Republican nominee.

“I don’t plan on endorsing anybody and I haven’t in the past,” she said. “Who we vote for is our own private decision. It’s not my focus or my responsibility. … I think the voters are smart enough to figure out who they want to vote for for the president.”

Matt Heinz, McSally's Democratic opponent, said McSally should be ashamed of herself.

“This is truly a disgrace,” Heinz said in a written statement. “While members of her own party are abandoning Trump, Martha McSally still refuses to tell the people of the 2nd District who she’s voting for. It’s now clear to everyone, including many long-time Trump supporters, that he is completely unfit to be president."

Congressional hopeful Paul Babeu briefly joined the Republicans who disavowed Trump in a tweet that disappeared an hour later.

“Donald Trump’s comments are reprehensible. They have no place in our public discourse. I will be writing in (Trump running mate) Mike Pence for President,” the Pinal County sheriff wrote in a tweet Saturday afternoon.

The tweet generated a torrent of criticism from readers condemning him for backing away from the GOP nominee.

One person, identified as Ed Gary, a country and western singer, said, “I will write you off as well.”

About an hour later Babeu's tweet was deleted. Saturday evening Babeu issued a statement via Facebook saying the tweet had been sent without his approval. In the statement, Babeu called Trump's comments "not acceptable" but said nothing about his endorsement or whether he would vote for him. It was time to "get back to the issues," Babeu's post stated.

McSally and Babeu's difficulty in explaining their views on Trump reflects a greater dilemma for Republicans nationally as they try to avert down-ticket losses as a price for loyalty to a compromised candidate. 

Babeu, who is running for the 1st Congressional District seat that encompasses eastern Arizona,  is locked in a tight race and McSally represents the 2nd District, which is evenly divided between Democrats and Republicans. 

Babeu earlier in the week was among the dignitaries who spoke in support of Trump at a rally in Prescott Valley.

“There’s a reason why the 14,000 police officers, deputies, Border Patrol agents right here in the state of Arizona proudly support and endorse Donald Trump as our next president. Absolutely,” Babeu said Tuesday.

“We need to be on the side of Donald Trump,” he said in arguing against Clinton and her attacks on coal.

Babeu’s opponent, Democat and former state lawmaker Tom O’Halleran, said the sheriff's disavowals would not work and tried to bring it back to Babeu’s past at a troubled Massachusetts school.

“Paul Babeu’s transparent attempt to distance himself from Donald Trump’s imploding campaign comes far too late and is just another example of Babeu’s lack of leadership and judgment, including his unwillingness to stand up for the most vulnerable in our society,” O’Halleran's statement said. “It was just three days ago that Paul Babeu stood on a stage and declared his unequivocal support for Trump. It should come as no surprise that a man who laughed about and praised child abuse and then denied responsibility is among the last to recognize Donald Trump’s actions as inexcusable. But it fits with his long record of allowing others to be victimized while advancing his own political career.”

Republic reporters Alia Beard Rau and Yvonne Wingett Sanchez contributed to this article.

READERS: Participate in our survey to improve azcentral’s comments