Former Secretary of State John Kerry marveled that President Donald Trump was not invited to Sen. John McCain’s funeral.
The comment came during Kerry’s appearance Wednesday on “The View” during a panel discussion about how past presidents were in attendance, but Trump was not.
“How extraordinary is it … you have President Clinton there, President Bush there, President Obama there. The current president of the United States could not go to the funeral of a war hero in America,” the former secretary of state said. “That is the most amazing statement I’ve ever seen. And to the contrary —”
“He wasn’t invited,” Joy Behar interjected.
“He wasn’t invited. But there’s a reason he wasn’t invited,” Kerry added. “And it’s the underlying reason that speaks to the problem we have in America today. You cannot have a president who seeks revenge. You cannot have a president who divides the country.”
Later, Abby Huntsman asked Kerry if he had any plans to run for president in 2020 and he shared that it was a mistake for Democrats to look past 2018.
“I have tried to be as direct and honest as I can about it. I doubt I’d be running for office again,” Kerry explained. “I think that — um — what — it’s a mistake to be focused on 2020. It just really is.”
“Every bit of energy and focus ought to be on 2018,” he added. “And that’s the moment.”
Kerry continued, “Look, I really think, let’s get to what’s really important. Our country is in real trouble. We have a democracy that we love, that we cherish, that we respect in so many ways. And yet, today, it isn’t working. I mean, I can remember as secretary of state sitting in front of a leader of another country because part of my message was, I have to raise their budget. I raise the budget. I could see the discomfort in the body language.”
“I talked about their budget. We haven’t passed a budget in years,” the former presidential candidate shared. “You could see him looking at me and he didn’t say it, because he’s polite, but ‘how are you guys doing? What about your budget? When is the last time the Congress passed one?'”
“There s a dysfunctionality and even a level of corruption in the system,” he added. “People at large on the right and on the left both see it. It’s the same thing, folks. Our system is not delivering to average folks. And when you have 52 percent of America’s income going to 1 percent of Americans, that is an unsustainable political equation. And you better fix it.”