Former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton remembered her friend and colleague Arizona Senator John McCain, highlighting his commitment to Americans — both in the military and as a public servant.
“He leaves a legacy of service and courage,” Clinton said Sunday during a phone appearance on NBC’s “Meet The Press.” “The courage we all came to know because of his time as a P.O.W, but getting up everyday and working as hard as he did for the people of Arizona, for the values that he cherished, wasn’t easy.”
McCain died on Saturday after a battle with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer, shortly after his family announced he was stopping treatment for the disease.
Clinton also said that McCain “set an example of working across the aisle” and tried to bring people together — a bipartisan style he became known for throughout his more than three decades in politics.
“He knew the Senate couldn’t work if we didn’t work together,” she said.
Clinton and McCain may have been on different sides of the aisle, but their political careers took similar paths. Both were defeated by Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential election — Clinton lost in the primary and McCain lost in the general election — and the lifelong politicians spent almost a decade together in the Senate.
“I have so many wonderful personal memories of him as well as public ones,” Clinton said.
More Must-Reads from TIME
- Why Trump’s Message Worked on Latino Men
- What Trump’s Win Could Mean for Housing
- The 100 Must-Read Books of 2024
- Sleep Doctors Share the 1 Tip That’s Changed Their Lives
- Column: Let’s Bring Back Romance
- What It’s Like to Have Long COVID As a Kid
- FX’s Say Nothing Is the Must-Watch Political Thriller of 2024
- Merle Bombardieri Is Helping People Make the Baby Decision
Contact us at letters@time.com