Meghan McCain has been served a bitter dose of reality after claiming she enjoyed watching Mr. Rogers as a child because he wasn’t political, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Social media users were quick to remind the late Sen. John McCain’s daughter how Rogers used his popular program to address political issues of the time, including segregation, as well as lobby for support for public broadcasting.
Meghan McCain Claims Mr. Rogers ‘Wasn’t Political’
McCain claimed Mr. Rogers was popular because his ‘political opinions’ were unknown.
“Wanna know one of the best things about Mr. Rogers growing up? I never knew anything about his political opinions. He just entertained kids. That’s it,” McCain wrote in an X post shared on Thursday, January 22.
While McCain’s post racked up over six million views, it garnered a measly 25,000 likes. Meanwhile, her replies were filled with posts highlighting Mr. Rogers’ politics, many of which earned more support than the original post.
“Mr. Rogers was always very stern about his values, and they did show in his show. Radical empathy, racial inclusion, anti-commercialism. I think you would call him a lib if you watched the show as an adult,” wrote one user in reply to the post.
“You are just consistently so f–king stupid,” mocked a second reply.
Social Media Hits Meghan McCain With Receipts of Mr. Rogers’ Politics
Cool story, Meghan. Here’s the famous pool scene from Mister Rogers in 1969 when he wanted to send a clear message about segregation despite many adults expressing concern over him being “too political.” pic.twitter.com/lYVy8Ga3KV
— Charlotte Clymer 🇺🇦 (@cmclymer) January 22, 2026
Social media users replied to McCain’s post with videos and photos of Rogers tackling political issues on his show.
“Cool story, Meghan. Here’s the famous pool scene from Mr. Rogers in 1969 when he wanted to send a clear message about segregation despite many adults expressing concern over him being ‘too political,'” a third wrote with a video clip from the show.
Rogers famously invited Officer Clemmons, played by Black actor François Clemmons, to share a kiddie pool with him to cool off their feet. He further challenged racial segregation by offering to share his towel with Clemmons.
The boundary-breaking episode aired in 1969, and while the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed five years earlier, racial tension remained and many public spaces like pools continued practicing segregation despite the law.
“Kids would’ve missed the context, but there were political messages, like this on segregation,” wrote another user who shared a photo of Rogers and Clemmons.
Mr. Rogers Testifies Before Senate for PBS Funding
Rogers testified before the Senate and secured federal funding for public broadcasting.
“Mr. Rogers risked his career to break the color barrier preventing whites and blacks from swimming/bathing together,” another reply read. “If you knew about this at the time, you’d have probably demanded to speak to his manager.”
“Just because you didn’t know doesn’t mean Fred Rogers wasn’t political. Republicans listened to him & for years supported funding, which was largely for PBS & NPR stations in their districts, but (Donald) Trump & the far right ended that,” one more reply read, referencing Rogers’ Senate testimony and billions in federal budget cuts for public broadcasting under Trump’s second administration.
The same year Rogers’ famous episode with Officer Clemmons aired, he testified before the Senate for support for public broadcasting.
How Mr. Rogers Championed Diversity and Inclusion
Rogers promoted inclusion by inviting Jeff Erlanger on his show to talk about using a wheelchair.
Rogers, who was a registered Republican, persuaded GOP lawmakers and then-President Nixon to continue funding for the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), the home of his children’s show.
As many replies to McCain’s post mentioned, Rogers consistently used his program to teach children about compassion and empathy and championed support and inclusion for children and adults with disabilities, which was taboo for the time.
In one remarkable episode, Rogers brought a young boy, Jeff Erlanger, who was quadriplegic, to the neighborhood to share what it’s like using a wheelchair.
“Mr. Rogers taught kindness, compassion, and empathy for everyone. He preached inclusivity of all. Everyone was your neighbor: everyone. He embraced diversity,” replied an X user. “The only reason this is political is because one party has taken a stance against the concepts Fred Rogers taught.”
