Who Is Bridget McCain? Details About John McCain's Adopted (And Very Private) Daughter
She's normally very private.
getty Since his election, Donald Trump has tweeted some pretty horrible things to all sorts of people. And one person who seemed to get under his skin more than anyone else is the late John McCain. Because even though the Senator passed away in 2018, Trump continues to attack his legacy.
McCain was a prisoner of war for five-and-a-half years in Vietnam, where he was beaten, interrogated, placed in solitary confinement, and was subject to severe torture while suffering from dysentery and heat. Though he was eventually released in 1973, he had a permanent injury making him incapable of raising his arms over his head.
During the 2016 election, Trump publicly said, “He’s not a war hero. He was a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren’t captured.”
And not only did that set off a rebuke from many Republicans in Congress, but from McCain’s family as well.
During a 2019 episode of The View, Meghan McCain responded to Trump’s claims and bizarre accusations. But another of the McCain children spoke up on Twitter: Meghan’s younger sister, Bridget.
Who is Bridget McCain?
In 1991, John and his wife Cindy adopted Bridget and brought the abandoned orphan home from Bangladesh.
Of the adoption, McCain recalled in 2000, “Well, it was primarily my wife Cindy’s idea. She was in Bangladesh and she and some of the medical personnel visited Mother Theresa’s orphanage to try and help the children there. There were two little baby girls there. One had a heart problem; the other a severe cleft palate. Cindy was very concerned about their ability to survive and their need for medical treatment, so she decided to bring them here for medical treatment. She fell in love with both of them. We decided to adopt Bridget. Two close friends of ours adopted Mickey, the other child. She has enriched our lives. She's a wonderful child, a complete part of our family and we love her.”
And though she is the adopted daughter of the McCains, she was never treated any differently than their biological kids.
Bridget later went on to pursue her education and enrolled in Arizona State University in 2010, where she wanted a career in special education, which her mother taught.
In a 2017 interview, John McCain had nothing but wonderful things to say about his kids: “We have Meghan in the media. We have Jack McCain in the Navy. We have Jimmy McCain in the Army Guard. And Renee [Jimmy’s wife] in the Air Force. And we are very proud of our daughter Bridget, who is the joy of our life. So we are truly blessed.”
But the 29-year-old, and the youngest of the McCain children, is definitely her father’s daughter. According to Cindy, Bridget “shares John’s very dry sense of humor.”
Rumors have swirled about Bridget McCain's background.
During McCain’s first presidential bid in 2000, rumors spread that Bridget was a child of an affair, perpetrated by racists.
Bridget later Googled herself. As Cindy recalled, “It just never clicked that she’d look herself up on the Internet. She was so upset, took it so personally. John and I tried to make Bridget understand that people who say things like that are very wrong; it’s not what we — nor most people — are about. Fortunately, she’s an awfully strong girl.”
Bridget McCain publicly defended her father.
In two tweets, Bridget called on Trump to be respectful and reminded everyone that they only buried their father less than a year ago. She also called attention to Trump’s fixation on her late father and how he lacks impulse control:
Meghan McCain spoke up for her sister Bridget.
Meghan praised her younger sister for her bravery to speak up against Trump.
“I don’t like coming here every day and having to do this. It’s extremely emotionally exhausting. I’m not the only child in my family. I have six brothers and sisters, and my little sister Bridget, for the first time ever, has decided she wanted to speak out — she’s very, very private. I think it’s very brave of her. She’s very young and she does not speak publicly,” she said in an episode of The View.
Meghan even posted a picture with Bridget and her father to show her support.
The death and legacy of Bridget McCain's adoptive father John McCain.
At her father’s funeral, she also read a passage from the Bible, quoting Ecclesiastes: “There is an appointed time for everything, and a time for every affair under the heavens. A time to give birth, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to uproot the plant.”
During a rally, Trump lashed out and attacked the late Senator, in front of an audience of veterans, saying he never received a “thank you” for “signing off” on McCain’s funeral, which Trump wasn't invited to.
In the end, people will remember McCain’s legacy as an honorable veteran, politician, and loving family man. As for Trump? We can't say the same for him.
Samantha Maffucci is an editor for YourTango who focuses on writing trending news and entertainment pieces. In her free time, you can find her obsessing about cats, wine, and all things Vanderpump Rules.
Editor’s Note: This article was originally posted on March 26, 2019 and was updated with the latest information.