White House Flag Is Raised, to a Small Outcry

There is a bit of a kerfuffle in the media this morning over the state of the White House flag, which is flying as it normally does—hence the questioning. The flag had been lowered to half-staff in the wake of Sen. John McCain's Saturday afternoon death. The AP reports the US Flag Code states that flags be lowered "on the day of death and the following day for a Member of Congress," meaning the flag's current position checks out. But Politico points out President Trump, who had a famously rocky relationship with McCain, has not yet issued a flag proclamation, which often occurs in the wake of such prominent deaths and would see the flag remain lowered. The site's email to the administration asking if that would occur was not answered.

These presidential proclamations, which have been issued by Trump following the deaths of Barbara Bush and Sen. John Glenn, generally hold that the flag should stay at half-staff until interment occurs; in McCain's case, that will be Saturday. Some flags elsewhere in the capital, including at the Capitol, remain lowered. The Washington Post reports the Washington Monument's flags were raised mid-morning on Monday. The Post highlights a Monday tweet from a rep for Chuck Schumer, who writes, "Senators Schumer & McConnell have requested that the @DeptofDefense provide necessary support so that US flags on all government buildings remain at half mast through sunset on the day of Senator McCain's internment." Read more on McCain's funeral arrangements, including who he'll be buried next to, here. (More John McCain stories.)