WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House lowered its U.S. flag to half-staff, raised it back up and on Monday lowered it again after the death of Senator John McCain, in an unusual and confusing break with protocol on the passing of a national leader. McCain, a prisoner of war in Vietnam, longtime U.S. senator from Arizona and 2008 Republican presidential nominee, died of brain cancer on Saturday at age 81. That prompted many Americans to lower flags to half-staff, a traditional gesture of honor. But President Donald Trump, who had clashed with fellow Republican McCain over various issues and said during his campaign that the senator was “not a war hero,” wavered in his approach to what presidents normally treat as a gesture of courtesy and respect. Trump’s White House lowered its flag on Saturday, then raised it back following the minimum period under law. Trump also delayed issuing the customary proclamation for flags to remain at half-staff for longer than the two-day minimum. Finally, under pressure from veterans and members of Congress, Trump said in a statement later on Monday that he respected McCain’s service to the nation and had ordered flags to half-staff. In a letter to Trump on its Facebook page, the American Legion veterans group had urged the White House “to follow long-established protocol following the death of prominent government officials.” The Legion described McCain as a “cherished member.” After a day of ignoring shouted questions about McCain, Trump broke his silence during a gathering of evangelical leaders at the White House on Monday evening. “Our hearts and prayers are going to the family of Senator John McCain ... and we very much appreciate everything Senator McCain has done for our country,” he told the religious leaders. Through most of Monday, confusion reigned across the federal government, with flags flying at half-staff over the U.S. Capitol and at hundreds of national parks, but at full-staff over the Pentagon and the U.S. Supreme Court. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security had issued a government-wide notification after McCain’s death to lower flags at U.S. facilities but rescinded it on Monday, leaving the decision to staff at individual sites, according to an official. ‘SOMEWHAT SHOCKING’ Presidents normally follow Congress’ lead on the death of a prominent lawmaker and order flags lowered until sunset on the day of burial. Critics of the president saw his reticence as a final slight against McCain. “I doubt you could find a comparable situation where the president doesn’t order the flag flown at half-mast until the funeral,” said John Lawrence, history professor at the University of California’s Washington Center. Slideshow ( 3 images ) “The disparity between the Congress and White House policy is obviously noticeable and somewhat shocking.” McCain was a frequent Trump critic and his family has said he did not want the president to attend his funeral. A family spokesman issued a farewell statement from McCain in which he said of the United States: “We weaken our greatness when we confuse our patriotism with tribal rivalries ... We weaken it when we hide behind walls, rather than tear them down, when we doubt the power of our ideals, rather than trust them to be the great force for change they have always been.”<doc-sep>"While organizations in the United States received the largest share of attacks, targeted victims span at least 24 countries. At least a quarter of the targeted organizations were involved in international development, humanitarian, and human rights work. Nobelium, originating from Russia, is the same actor behind the attacks on SolarWinds customers in 2020. These attacks appear to be a continuation of multiple efforts by Nobelium to target government agencies involved in foreign policy as part of intelligence gathering efforts," Microsoft explained. Microsoft believes the attacks are notable for three reasons. "First, when coupled with the attack on SolarWinds, it's clear that part of Nobelium's playbook is to gain access to trusted technology providers and infect their customers. By piggybacking on software updates and now mass email providers, Nobelium increases the chances of collateral damage in espionage operations and undermines trust in the technology ecosystem," Microsoft argued. "Second, perhaps unsurprisingly, Nobelium's activities and that of similar actors tend to track with issues of concern to the country from which they are operating. This time Nobelium targeted many humanitarian and human rights organizations. At the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, Russian actor Strontium targeted healthcare organizations involved in vaccines. In 2019, Strontium targeted sporting and anti-doping organizations. And we've previously disclosed activity by Strontium and other actors targeting major elections in the U.S. and elsewhere," Microsoft explained. "This is yet another example of how cyberattacks have become the tool of choice for a growing number of nation-states to accomplish a wide variety of political objectives, with the focus of these attacks by Nobelium on human rights and humanitarian organizations." "Third, nation-state cyberattacks aren't slowing. We need clear rules governing nation-state conduct in cyberspace and clear expectations of the consequences for violation of those rules. We must continue to rally around progress made by the Paris Call for Trust and Security in Cyberspace, and more widely adopt the recommendations of the Cybersecurity Tech Accord, and the CyberPeace Institute. But, we need to do more. Microsoft will continue to work with willing governments and the private sector to advance the cause of digital peace," Microsoft vowed.<doc-sep>
Trump’s White House Fails to Keep Flag at Half-staff to Honor McCain On Saturday, the nation learned about the passing of an American hero, Senator John McCain. The career military official, Prisoner of War and Senator of Arizona, passed away due to complications from brain cancer at the age of 81. Over the last year and a half of his life, McCain was one of President Trump’s biggest opponents, appearing to put his beliefs of what he thought was best for America, over partisan politics. McCain was the deciding vote in Trump’s Obamacare repeal push, and has spoken out numerous times regarding Trump’s comments and actions towards Russia. While the White House lowered their flags to half-staff on Saturday, this morning, these flags at the White House and the Eisenhower Executive Building are back at full-staff. The typical tradition is to keep the flag lowered until the body reaches its final resting place, which in the case of John McCain would be next Sunday when the Senator is expected to be buried at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. Flag back at full staff atop WH. Pres Trump did not issue proclamation on the death of @SenJohnMcCain, which usually calls for flags to remain at half-staff through the day of interment, which is Sunday at the @NavalAcademy. pic.twitter.com/NGasNPT0VB — Mark Knoller (@markknoller) August 27, 2018 The US Capitol building continues to fly their flag at half-staff in accordance to tradition, and multiple states’ governors have also decided to keep their flags at half-staff until the Senator is buried. While we don’t know the reason why the White House has put their flags back to full-staff, many on Twitter are already guessing that it’s the President’s grudge against Senator McCain which has caused this rift with tradition. Trump also has refused to issue a presidential proclamation for McCain, which would be typical when a man of McCain’s stature passes. Trump has repeatedly, in the past, attacked the Senator, even as he battled a deadly form of brain cancer. White House flag back at full staff today says it all. #NoRespect https://t.co/o8Sn6sOfmy — Andrea Mitchell (@mitchellreports) August 27, 2018 White house flag is currently at full staff for those of you who really care about kneeling and respect and all that. — CJ (@CJintheKeys) August 27, 2018