The White House refuted reports Wednesday night that President Trump was mocking the late Sen. John McCain when he said he was happy some senators left Washington for “greener pastures.”

White House spokesman Hogan Gidley said there was “some confusion over who the president was talking about” at an evangelical conference earlier in the day.

“Some people in the media are speculating he was talking about Senator McCain. That’s absolutely ridiculous,” Mr. Gidley said. “He was talking specifically about Senators Corker and Flake.”

Former Sens. Bob Corker of Tennessee and Jeff Flake of Arizona, both Republicans who clashed openly with the president, retired last year.

Mr. Flake responded by posting a photo of himself smiling on a tropical beach at sunset, with the caption “greener pastures.”

At the Faith and Freedom Coalition conference in Washington, Mr. Trump said, “They’ve gone on to greener pastures. Or perhaps, far less green pastures, but they’re gone.”

Several news outlets speculated that he was referring to Mr. McCain, who died in 2018 but has remained a target of the president’s criticisms.

Sign up for Daily Newsletters Manage Newsletters

Copyright © 2020 The Washington Times, LLC. Click here for reprint permission.