( CNN ) -- Sen. John McCain said Monday that Rep. John Lewis ' controversial remarks were `` so disturbing '' that they `` stopped me in my tracks . '' Sen. John McCain says comments made by Rep. John Lewis were `` unacceptable . '' Lewis , a Georgia representative and veteran of the civil rights movement , on Saturday compared the feeling at recent Republican rallies to those of segregationist George Wallace . `` That 's not from some , quote , party official , that 's from one of the most respected people in America . It 's unfair . It 's unfair and it 's outrageous , '' he said in an exclusive interview with CNN 's Dana Bash . `` I never believed that John Lewis , who is an American hero whom I admire , would ever make a comment of that nature . He even referred to the bombing of a church in Birmingham . That 's unacceptable , '' he said . Watch McCain 's reaction » . Lewis on Saturday said in a statement that McCain and Gov . Sarah Palin `` are sowing the seeds of hatred and division . '' `` During another period , in the not too distant past , there was a governor of the state of Alabama named George Wallace who also became a presidential candidate . George Wallace never threw a bomb . He never fired a gun , but he created the climate and the conditions that encouraged vicious attacks against innocent Americans who were simply trying to exercise their constitutional rights . Because of this atmosphere of hate , four little girls were killed on Sunday morning when a church was bombed in Birmingham , Alabama , '' wrote the Democrat . He later said a `` careful review '' of his comments `` would reveal that I did not compare Sen. John McCain or Gov . Sarah Palin to George Wallace . '' A McCain aide described the moment that the campaign saw Lewis ' comment as an emotional one and a reality check as to `` what the campaign is up against . '' The aide said they all stopped , delayed McCain 's flight and got on a conference call to try to figure out how to respond . McCain said Saturday that Lewis ' earlier statement was `` a brazen and baseless attack '' and called on Sen. Barack Obama to repudiate it . McCain on Monday again criticized Obama for not condemning Lewis ' words . The Obama campaign said that Obama `` does not believe that John McCain or any policy criticism is in any way comparable to George Wallace or his segregationist policies '' but said Lewis was `` right to condemn some of the hateful rhetoric . '' McCain told CNN that Lewis ' status as a respected politician makes his remarks even more unacceptable . `` I say when anybody says anything like that that is so beyond the pale , that it stuns me , because that 's not what America and this debate should be all about , '' he said . `` I will reject that kind of language , and again , I 'm so disappointed in Congressman John Lewis . '' Some McCain supporters have yelled `` treason , '' `` kill him '' and `` terrorist '' at recent campaign events . Asked about the anger at his rallies -- something that has increased since the McCain campaign started highlighting Obama 's ties to 1960s radical Bill Ayers , McCain said he was insulted by some characterizations of his supporters . `` There is always the fringe element that 's in politics in America . The overwhelming majority of the people that come to my rallies are good and decent and patriotic Americans , '' the Republican presidential candidate said . `` For anybody to intimate that the overwhelming ... 99 percent is anything but patriotic and good Americans is frankly unacceptable , and I wo n't stand for it . '' Obama has publicly acknowledged McCain 's efforts to get his supporters to show respect . McCain said Monday that despite trailing Obama in the polls , he 's comfortable with where he and his running mate are . According to CNN 's latest poll of polls , Obama is up by 8 percentage points , 50-42 . CNN 's national poll of polls consists of six surveys : ABC/Washington Post ( October 8-11 ) , Fox News/Opinion Dynamics ( October 8-9 ) , Newsweek ( October 8-9 ) , Reuters/C-SPAN/Zogby ( October 10-12 ) , Gallup ( October 10-12 ) and Diageo/Hotline ( October 10-12 ) . It does not have a sampling error . `` We 're going to be just fine . I have been written off on so many occasions by political pundits that it 's hard for me to count , '' McCain said , joking that his campaign has `` more lives than a cat . '' `` But the point is -- we 're doing fine . I 'm happy where we 're at , we 're fighting the good fight . That 's what it 's all about . ''
In exclusive talk with GOP , McCain says he is `` so disappointed '' in Rep. Lewis . Lewis on October 8-9 compared feeling at CNN rallies to those of McCain . McCain on anger from some supporters : There 's always `` fringe element '' in politics . McCain says his campaign has `` more lives than a cat ''