Cindy McCain Says Late Husband John Wouldn't Want Her to 'Sit Alone and Cry' After His Death

Cindy McCain.Photo: Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call

“He heard the music, he saw the hawk, and he passed,” Cindy recalled toThe Washington Postas she opened up for the first time since her husband’s death at 81 from brain cancer. “He totally was in charge, and I mean this in the most loving way.”

Since then, the 64-year-old widow has seemingly been a whirlwind of energy. She quickly sold a condo the couple shared and moved to a French-country home a block from where she grew up. “This neighborhood is very comforting to me,” she toldThe Post.

“The last thing that John would have wanted me to do was just to sit here alone and cry — and mind you, I’ve had my moments,” added Cindy, who has given speeches across the country and the world, monitored elections in Ukraine, and chairs theMcCain Institute for International Leadership.

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“One thing he taught me, among so many things, was the importance of getting back up, the importance of keep doing what you’ve been doing,” McCain continued. “I’ve been doing these things all along. I think the reason people are noticing now is because he’s gone.”

Unlike her late husband and daughterMeghan McCain, a co-host ofThe View,Cindy admitted that she isn’t known for her outspoken opinions.

“We used to joke when Meghan was a little girl that she was John McCain in a dress because she is just like him,” she told thePost,describing their daughter as “tenacious, smart, driven, impatient and opinionated.”

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Amid the crowded2020 presidential race, Cindy has chosen to forgo entering the fray of politics, telling thePostthat she has no intention of responding to Donald Trump’srepeated attacks on her late husband — unlike Meghan.

“And not because I’m angry about anything. I’m not,” she said, noting she did not vote for Trump. “My job is my family, and what I’m concerned about is whether or not they’re happy, whether everyone’s got their lives together, whether they need anything. I’ve not thought about responding.”

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Still, Cindy explained that unlike the days when words misspoken could have damaged her husband’s political career, she does feel more empowered to speak up.

“You hit a certain age — women do, at least in my opinion — where you’re going to say what you think and not hold back,” she toldThe Post.

“For so many people, especially political wives, you have to be careful and remind yourself that you can’t say exactly what’s on your mind. I’m not saying that I’ve become rude, but I think the issues are important and it’s easier for me to stand up to somebody now and say, ‘No, you’re wrong on that,’ ” she said.

source: people.com