Sen. Jim Inhofe’s office Tuesday walked back a comment that led reporters to believe Sen. John McCain would be returning to Washington, D.C., on May 1 to work on a major defense bill.
Reports surfaced Tuesday afternoon that Inhofe told reporters McCain would be returning to the capital on May 1 to oversee the process of reauthorizing defense programs. However, Inhofe’s spokeswoman said there was a miscommunication and Inhofe doesn’t know when McCain will come back to Washington.
“They haven’t had any conversations about that,” spokeswoman Leacy Burke told the Washington Examiner. “Inhofe was just communicating that Chairman McCain has set the date for the NDAA process to start – May 7.”
Inhofe reported that McCain, who has been in Arizona receiving treatment for brain cancer, drew up the timeline for the National Defense Authorization Act process.
A reporter from Bloomberg initially reported McCain would be returning.
.@BGOV scoop: Sen. McCain said to return to Washington to oversee defense authorization May 1; @JimInhofe tells me McCain suggested the date
— Roxana Tiron (@rtiron) April 10, 2018
McCain was diagnosed with glioblastoma last July. He spent part of the end of 2017 working in Washington, but has remained home since the beginning of the year.
McCain is currently writing a memoir with co-author Mark Salter, a long-time adviser.
This story has been updated with Inhofe’s spokeswoman’s comments and changed to reflect her statement.
Reporter Susan Ferrechio contributed to this story.
