Image source: Islamic Republic News Agency BY JONAS BRUUN Senator John McCain seems to have quite the monkey on his back after a comment he made about the Iran space program Monday. McCain mocked Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Twitter saying: “So Ahmadinejad wants to be first Iranian in space - wasn't he just there last week?...” The tweet included a link to an article showing the seemingly timid Iranian space monkey. Iran claimed to have successfully sent the monkey into space last week. Ahmadinejad later made comments expressing his interest to follow in the monkey’s footsteps and become an astronaut. The president told to the national news agency : "I'm ready to be the first Iranian to sacrifice myself for our country's scientists." On Monday, the Iranian government followed up the story by releasing pictures of President Ahmadinejad meeting the space monkey. John McCain’s comment quickly caused a stir on Twitter, many of them l abelling the Republican as a racist . One hour after his first tweet, McCain responded to the critics: “Iran space tweet - lighten up folks, can’t everyone take a joke?” That didn’t seem to slow down the turmoil, however. Fellow Republican, congressman Justin Amash from Michigan, joined the chorus of critics, tweeting: “Maybe you should wisen up & not make racist jokes.” A Republican attacking a fellow party member is not something you see every day. But as an Atlantic Wire writer points: “ Of course, this all could have been avoided if, say, Iran sent a seahorse into space. Or if John McCain just refrained from trying to be ‘funny.'" It’s not the first time senator John McCain has been in the spotlight for making a joke about Iran. During his presidential campaign in 2007, McCain sang about bombing the country. It happened when a GOP primary voter asked McCain when the United States would send an air-mail message to Tehran. McCain responded : “ That old Beach Boys’ song, ‘Bomb Iran?’ Bomb, bomb, bomb—, anyway.” In the meantime, Iran and president Ahmadinejad are dealing with some PR problems of their own. Last week, multiple reports dismissed that Iran’s space launch actually succeeded. And that’s not their only aviation woe. Flights experts at The Aviationist Magazine affirm that the country’s newly announced super stealth fighter is nothing more than a mock-up.