McCain sorrowful over death of activist, hostage Mueller

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – Sen. John McCain said Friday that he considers the death of American Kayla Mueller by Islamic State militants one of the saddest moments of his life as he looked back on his work in trying to secure her freedom and the government’s policy of not paying ransom to terrorists.

McCain discussed the Mueller saga during a news conference in Phoenix after a week that saw him take a spot on the national defense stage yet again following the confirmation of Mueller’s death. McCain, himself a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War, worked to get Mueller set free over the last 18 months after she was captured in Syria in August 2013. At one point, Islamic State demanded money for her release, but the U.S. has a policy of not paying ransom in hostage situations.

“It’s a very tough issue. Your head tells you one thing, and your heart tells you something else. Your heart tells you that you want to do anything, anything to bring someone like Kayla Mueller home,” he said. “At the same time, any outside objective expert will testify that when we ransom people like that, then it encourages more hostage-taking, so it’s a very, very tough issue, and unfortunately, after a lot of thought, I have agreed that I don’t think it’s a good idea to ransom hostages. And that sounds great until I read Kayla Mueller’s letter.”

The confirmation of Mueller’s death this week galvanized President Barack Obama’s efforts to attack Islamic State, an effort that McCain has loudly criticized from his position as chairman of the Senate Armed Forces Committee. Republicans have expressed unhappiness that Obama had chosen to exclude any long-term commitment of ground forces.

McCain said that when he would visit the Middle East, he pressed leaders, including the emir of Qatar, to do what they could to help locate Mueller.

“The fact is I failed, I failed,” McCain said.

“Because I was unable to get her back, and I view it as one of the really sad things in my life that I was unable to. No one could read Kayla’s letter without being, you know, it brings us all to tears.”

A candlelight vigil for Mueller is scheduled this evening at Northern Arizona University, where she graduated in 2009.

Another candlelight memorial is planned in her hometown of Prescott, Arizona, on Wednesday at the courthouse plaza.