Kiss of death part deux.

(Briefing Room) — Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) praised a backup plan by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell to raise the debt ceiling.

“I strongly support Senator McConnell’s efforts to avoid a default on our nation’s debt, and the last-case emergency proposal he outlined yesterday to ensure that Republicans aren’t unduly blamed for failure to raise the debt ceiling,” McCain said in a statement on Wednesday.

McCain, the 2008 Republican presidential nominee, criticized President Obama for warning that unless the debt ceiling is raised, Social Security checks for seniors might not go out on Aug. 3, a day after the Treasury Department projects the government will default unless a deal is reached.

“The President is stoking fears among our seniors by falsely asserting that Republicans’ position on the debt talks endangers their Social Security checks,” McCain continued. “The President’s obvious strategy is to convince Americans that Republicans are to blame for the current impasse and any worst-case scenarios of default.”

See: How Bad Is McConnell’s Debt Plan? So Bad Even Harry Reid Is Praising It