--- description: Former Nevada Sen. Harry Reid talked about his touching final phone call with Arizona Sen. John McCain they had a few weeks before he died title: Former Sen. Harry Reid Says He and John McCain Said 'I Love You' in Final Phone Call image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt42bda6ad350b044c/698938b5ab6d771ab36b382b/harry-reid-john-mccain-i-love-you.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Politics](/section/politics/) ## Politics Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Congress](/tag/congress/) ## Congress Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Former Sen. Harry Reid Says He and John McCain Said 'I Love You' in Final Phone Call by [Alix Langone](/author/alix-langone/) ## Alix Langone Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 26, 2018 1:50 PM CUT  Jordan's King Abdullah II (2nd R) speaks with US Senator Saxby Chambliss (2nd R), a Republican from Georgia, alongside Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (2nd L) and Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona, prior to a meeting at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, December 2, 2014. Jordan's King Abdullah II (2nd R) speaks with US Senator Saxby Chambliss (2nd R), a Republican from Georgia, alongside Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (2nd L) and Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona, prior to a meeting at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, December 2, 2014.Saul Loeb - FP/Getty Images by [Alix Langone](/author/alix-langone/) ## Alix Langone Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 26, 2018 1:50 PM CUT Former Nevada Sen. Harry Reid released a heartfelt message about the passing of [Arizona Sen. John McCain](http://time.com/longform/john-mccains-life-of-service-photos/ "undefined"), writing that the two politicians said they loved each other during their last phone call. “John and I both ended our final call a few weeks ago by telling each other, ‘I love you,’ and that was how we felt about one another,” Reid said in a statement. “There will never be another John McCain.” > [](https://twitter.com/SenatorReid/status/1033552927678492672) Sen. Reid and Sen. McCain rose up through the ranks of politics together — both joining the Senate in 1987\. “Even when we disagreed, there was never any doubt that this man was a national hero who fought with honor,” Reid said. The former Nevada Senator [also underwent treatment for cancer this year](http://time.com/5276935/harry-reid-pancreatic-cancer/ "undefined"), having a tumor removed from him pancreas in May before undergoing chemotherapy. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5378420/harry-reid-john-mccain-tribute/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5378420/harry-reid-john-mccain-tribute/"},"headline":"Former Sen. Harry Reid Says He and John McCain Said 'I Love You' in Final Phone Call","datePublished":"2018-08-26T13:50:15.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T21:15:35.565Z","description":"He shared details of their emotional conversation","url":"https://time.com/5378420/harry-reid-john-mccain-tribute/","keywords":["Congress","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt42bda6ad350b044c/698938b5ab6d771ab36b382b/harry-reid-john-mccain-i-love-you.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Alix Langone","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/alix-langone/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt42bda6ad350b044c/698938b5ab6d771ab36b382b/harry-reid-john-mccain-i-love-you.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"US-JORDAN-CONGRESS-ABDULLAH","caption":"US-JORDAN-CONGRESS-ABDULLAH","creditText":"Saul Loeb - FP/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/congress/","name":"Congress"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5378420/harry-reid-john-mccain-tribute/","name":"Former Sen. Harry Reid Says He and John McCain Said 'I Love You' in Final Phone Call"}}]}] ```