White House aide who joked about John McCain's ill health is out

A West Wing aide who was dismissive of gravely ill Sen. John McCain during a closed-door meeting last month has left the White House in Washington.

White House spokesperson Raj Shah says, "Kelly Sadler is no longer employed within the Executive Office of the President."

Sadler told colleagues last month they should disregard McCain's opinion on President Donald Trump's CIA nominee because "he's dying anyway," a remark that led to a torrent of criticism.

The Trump administration declined to publicly apologize and Trump demanded a crackdown on whoever leaked the story to the media.

McCain, 81, was diagnosed in July with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer.

Sadler apologized to the McCain family privately, but McCain's daughter Meghan asked for a public apology.

Prior to joining the administration, Sadler was a reporter with the conservative Washington Times and a contributor to Fox News.

Sadler's departure was first reported by CNN.