So Ahmadinejad wants to be first Iranian in space – wasn’t he just there last week? “Iran launches monkey into space” news.yahoo.com/iran-launches-…
— John McCain (@SenJohnMcCain) February 4, 2013
Apparently stung by the response on Twitter, McCain later added:
Re: Iran space tweet – lighten up folks, can’t everyone take a joke?
— John McCain (@SenJohnMcCain) February 4, 2013
In response, Republican Representative Justin Amash of Michigan tweeted:
Maybe you should wisen up & not make racist jokes. “@senjohnmccain: Re: Iran space tweet – lighten up folks, can’t everyone take a joke?” — Justin Amash (@repjustinamash) February 4, 2013
It’s not the first time McCain’s comments about a foreign leader on Twitter have raised eyebrows. In August 2009, he tweeted about an “interesting meeting” with Libyan strongman Moammar Gadhafi, calling him “an interesting man.”
McCain, long a fixture on the Senate Armed Services Committee, recently joined the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which vets nominees to senior diplomatic posts