The Hill News

Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said Tuesday that he would not reject the possibility of exiling Libyan leader Col. Moammar Gadhafi should he be removed from power.

Great Britain and Italy have raised the possibility of allowing Gadhafi to go into exile as a way to end his four decade rule; a process that would allow him to skirt punishment for potential war crimes.

{mosads}"I think it's a possibility and I would not reject it," McCain, the 2008 GOP presidential nominee and ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said on CBS's "Early Show." 

McCain said he wants Gadhafi to face charges from the International Criminal Court, but he said removing him from power should b! e the main goal.

"I would love to see him held accountable, but the object is to get him out," he said.

Following President Obama's speech Monday night on the U.S.'s military intervention in Libya, McCain said it is a mistake not to use force to remove Gadhafi from power.