♪ ♪
♪ >>> THE NATION JOINS YOUR
EXTRAORDINARY FAMILY IN GRIEF
AND GRATITUDE FOR JOHN McCAIN.
SOME LIVES ARE SO VIVID IT’S
DIFFICULT TO IMAGINE THEM ENDED.
SOME VOITSCES ARE SO VIBRANT AND
DISTINCTIVE.
DISTINCTIVE. IT’S HARD TO THINK OF THEM
STILL.
STILL. THE ACCESS IS LIKE THE SILENCE
AFTER A MIGHTY ROAR.
THE THING RABBIT JOHN’S LIFE WAS
THE AMAZING SWEEP OF IT.
FROM A TINY CELL IN VIETNAM TO
THE FLOOR OF THE UNITED STATES
SENATE.
SENATE. FROM TROUBLE MAKING PLEA TO
PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE.
PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE. WHEREVER JOHN PASSED THROUGHOUT
THE WORLD, PEOPLE IMMEDIATELY
KNEW THERE WAS A LEADER IN THEIR
MIDST.
MIDST. ONE EPIC LIFE WAS WRITTEN
ENCOURAGING GREATNESS OF OUR
COUNTRY.
COUNTRY. FOR JOHN AND ME, THERE WAS A
PERSONAL JOURNEY.
PERSONAL JOURNEY. OUR HARD FOUGHT POLITICAL
HISTORY.
HISTORY. BACK IN THE DAY, HE COULD
FRUSTRATE ME.
FRUSTRATE ME. AND I KNOW HE WOULD SAY THE SAME
THING ABOUT ME, BUT HE ALSO MADE
ME BETTER.
ME BETTER. IN RECENT YEARS, WE SOMETIMES
TALK OF THAT INTENSE PERIOD LIKE
FOOTBALL PLAYERS.
FOOTBALL PLAYERS. REMEMBERING A BIG GAME.
IN THE PROCESS RIVALRY MELTED
AWAY.
AWAY. IN THE END, I GOT TO ENJOY ONE
OF LIFE’S GREAT GIFTS.
THE FRIENDSHIP OF JOHN McCAIN.
AND I MISS HIM.
MOMENTS BEFORE MY LAST DEBATE
EVER WITH SENATOR JOHN KERRY IN
PHOENIX, I WAS TRYING TO GATHER
THOUGHTS IN THE HOLDING ROOM.
I FELT A PRESENCE.
OPENED MY EYES AND SIX INCHES
FROM MY FACE WAS McCAIN WHO
YELLED, RELAX, RELAX.
JOHN WAS ABOVE ALL A MAN WITH A
CODE.
CODE. HE LIVED BY A SET OF PUBLIC
VIRTUES THAT BROUGHT STRENGTH
AND PURPOSE TO HIS LIFE AND TO
HIS COUNTRY.
HIS COUNTRY. HE WAS COURAGEOUS.
WITH A COURAGE THAT FRIGHTENED
HIS CAPTORS AND INSPIRED HI
COUNTRYMEN.
COUNTRYMEN. HE WAS HONEST NO MATTER WHO IT
OFFENDED.
OFFENDED. PRESIDENTS WERE NOT SPARED.
HE WAS HONORABLE.
ALWAYS RECOGNIZING THAT HIS
OPPONENTS WERE STILL PATRIOTS
AND HUMAN BEINGS.
HE LOVED FREEDOM WITH A PASSION
OF A MAN WHO KNEW ITS ABSENCE.
HE RESPECTED THE DIGNITY
INHERENT IN EVERY LIFE.
A DIGNITY THAT DOES NOT SPOT AT
BORDERS AND CANNOT BE AERASED BI
DICTATORS.
DICTATORS. MOST OF ALL, JOHN DETESTED THE
ABUSE OF POWER.
COULD NOT ABIDE BYIGOTS.
SOMETHING DEEP INSIDE HIM THAT
MADE HIM STAND UP FOR THE LITTLE
GUY.
GUY. SPEAK FOR FORGOTTEN PEOPLE IN
FORGOTTEN PLACES.
FORGOTTEN PLACES. ONE FROM FROM HIS NAVAL ACADEMY
DAYS JOHN WHILE A LOWLY PLEA
REACTED TO SEEING AN UPPER
CLASSMAN VERBALLY ABUSE A
STUART.
STUART. HE TOLD THE JERK TO PICK ON
SOMEONE HIS OWN SIZE.
IT WAS A FAMILIAR REFRAIN DURING
HIS SIX DECADES OF SERVICE.
WHERE DOES THE STRENGTH AND
CONVICTION COME FROM, PERHAPS
FROM A FAMILY WHERE HONOR WAS IN
THE ATMOSPHERE OR FROM THE FIRST
EXPERIENCE OF CRUELTY WHICH LEFT
PHYSICAL REMINDERS THAT LASTED
HIS WHOLE LIFE.
OR FROM SOME DEEP WELL OF MORE
OR LESS PRINCIPLE.
WHATEVER THE CAUSE, IT WAS JUST
COMBINATION OF COURAGE AND
DECENCY THAT DEFINED JOHN’S
CALLING.
CALLING. AND SO CLOSELY PARALLELED THE
CALLING OF HIS COUNTRY.
THIS COMBINATION OF COURAGE AND
DECENCY THAT MAKES THE AMERICAN
MILITARY SOMETHING NEW IN
HISTORY.
HISTORY. AN UNRIVALLED POWER FOR GOOD.
THIS COMBINATION OF COURAGE AND
DECENCY THAT SET AMERICA ON A
JOURNEY INTO THE WORLD.
TO LIBERATE DEATH CAMPS.
TO STAND GUARD AGAINST
EXTREMISM.
EXTREMISM. AND TO WORK FOR THE TRUE PEACE
THAT COMES ONLY WITH FREEDOM.
JOHN FELT THESE COMMITMENTS IN
HIS BONES.
HIS BONES. IT IS A TRIBUTE TO HIS MORAL
COMPASS THAT PRISONERS IN SO
MANY PLACES FROM RUSSIA TO NORTH
KOREA TO CHAININA KNEW HE WAS ON
THEIR SIDE.
THEIR SIDE. AND I THINK THEIR RESPECT MEANT
MORE TO HIM THAN ANY METALS AND
HONORS LIFE COULD BRING.
THE PASSION FOR FAIRNESS AND
JUSTICE EXTENDED TO OUR OWN
MILITARY.
MILITARY. WHEN A PRIVATE WAS POORLY
EQUIPPED AND SEAMAN WAS
OVERWORKED, JOHN ENJOYED NOTHING
MORE THAN DRESS DISTRICT MANAGER
DOWN AN ADMIRAL OR GENERAL.
HE REMAINED A TROUBLESOME PLEA
UNTIL THE TEND.
THOSE IN POLITICAL POWER WERE
NOT EXEMPT.
NOT EXEMPT. AT VARIOUS POINTS THROUGHOUT HIS
LONG CAREER, JOHN CONFRONTED
POLICIES AND PRACTICES THAT HE
BELIEVED WERE UNWORTHY OF HIS
COUNTRY.
COUNTRY. TO THE FACE OF THOSE IN
AUTHORITY JOHN WOULD INSIST WE
ARE BETTER THAN THIS.
AMERICA IS BETTER THAN THIS.
JOHN IS THE FIRST TO TELL YOU
HE’S NOT A PERFECT MAN, BUT HE
DEDICATED HIS LIFE TO NATIONAL
IDEALS THAT ARE AS PERFECT AS
MEN AND WOMEN HAVE YET
CONCEIVED.
CONCEIVED. HE WAS MOTIVATED BY A VISION OF
AMERICA CARRIED FORWARD ANDUP
UPWARD ON THE STRENGTH OF
PRINCIPLES.
PRINCIPLES. SAW COUNTRY NOT ONLY AS PHYSICAL
PLACE OR POWER, BUT AS THE
CARRIER OF ENDURING HUMAN
ASPIRATION
ASPIRATION ASPIRATIONS.
ASPIRATIONS. AN ADVOCATE FOR THE OPPRESSED,
DEFENDER OF THE PEACE, AS A
PROMISE ON WAIVERS, UNDEMMED,
UNEQUAL.
UNEQUAL. THE STRENGTH OF A DEMOCRACY IS
RENEWED BY AFFIRMING THE
PRINCIPALS ON WHICH IT WAS
FOUNDED.
FOUNDED. AN AMERICA SOMEHOW ALWAYS FOUND
LEADERS WHO WERE UP TO THAT
TASK.
TASK. PARTICULARLY AT A TIME OF
GREATEST NEED.
GREATEST NEED. JOHN WAS BORN TO MEET THAT KIND
OF CHALLENGE.
OF CHALLENGE. DEFEND AND DEMONSTRATE THE
DEFINING IDEALS OF OUR NATION.
IF WE’RE EVER TEMPERATURETED TO
WHO WE ARE, GROW WEARY OF THE
CAUSE, JOHN’S VOICE WILL COME
OVER THE SHOULDER.
WE ARE BETTER THAN THIS.
AMERICA IS BETTER THAN THIS.
JOHN WAS A RESTLESS SOUL.
HE REALLY DIDN’T GLORY IN
SUCCESS OR WALLOW IN FAILURE.
BECAUSE HE WAS ALWAYS ON TO THE
NEXT THING.
NEXT THING. FRIENDS SAID HE CAN’T STAY IN
THE SAME EXPERIENCE.
ONE OF HIS BOOKS ENDED WITH THE
WORDS AND I MOVED ON.
JOHN HAS MOVED ON.
HE WOULD PROBABLY NOT WANT US TO
DWELL ON IT, BUT WE ARE BETTER
FOR HIS PRESENCE AMONG US.
WORLD IS SMALLER FOR HIS