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Journalism of Courage
John McCain, Republican US Senator and 2008 presidential nominee, died of brain cancer on Saturday at the age of 81. The six-time Arizona senator was diagnosed with an aggressive tumor called a glioblastoma in 2017 after which he underwent a surgery to remove a blood clot in his brain.
McCain, a former Navy pilot, was held as a prisoner of war in Vietnam for more than five years. He was elected to Congress in the early 1980s and was elected to the Senate in 1986, replacing Barry Goldwater who retired. McCain gained a reputation as a lawmaker who was willing to stick to his convictions rather than go along with party leaders, according to The Associated Press.
Read | Captivity, candor and hard votes: Nine moments that made John McCain
Wife of Senator John McCain, Cindy McCain in a post on Twitter wrote, “My heart is broken. I am so lucky to have lived the adventure of loving this incredible man for 38 years. He passed the way he lived, on his own terms, surrounded by the people he loved, in the place he loved best.”
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump tweeted, “My deepest sympathies and respect go out to the family of Senator John McCain. Our hearts and prayers are with you!”
Former US president Barack Obama and his wife Michelle Obama issued a statement: “Few of us have been tested the way John once was, or required to show the kind of courage that he did. But all of us can aspire to the courage to put the greater good above our own.”
McCain had an unsuccessful run for president as a self-styled maverick Republican in 2008 but lost to Democrat Barack Obama, who went on to become the first black US president.
He was the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, was a frequent critic as well as a target of his fellow Republican, Trump, who was elected president in November 2016. McCain denounced Trump for among other things his praise of Russian President Vladimir Putin and other leaders the senator described as foreign “tyrants.”
McCain passed away at his ranch in Arizona on Saturday afternoon, he will receive a full dress funeral service at the Washington National Cathedral before being buried in Annapolis, Maryland, his family was reported as saying by Reuters. Former President Barack Obama, former President George W. Bush and former Vice-President Joe Biden were expected to give eulogies. Vice-President Mike Pence was expected to represent the current administration, the family further added.
Mccain’s daughter Meghan Mccain shared a post on Twitter with a heartfelt letter after her the passing of her father was announced.
US Vice-President Mike pence tweeted: “Karen and I send our deepest condolences to Cindy and the entire McCain family on the passing of Senator John McCain. We honor his lifetime of service to this nation in our military and in public life. His family and friends will be in our prayers. God bless John McCain.”
Former US President Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton in a statement said: “Senator John McCain believed that every citizen has a responsibility to make something of the freedoms given by our Constitution…He lived by his creed every day.”
Former Vice-President of the United States Joe Biden tweeted, “John McCain was many things – a proud graduate of the Naval Academy, a Senate colleague, a political opponent. But, to me, more than anything, John was a friend. He will be missed dearly.”
In a statement on Friday, the McCain family has said “the progress of the disease and the inexorable advance of age” led the US senator to discontinue medical treatment. “With his usual strength of will, he has now chosen to discontinue medical treatment,” the family had added.
The Vietnam War veteran represented Arizona in the Senate and House of Representatives for 35 years. He had a reputation for speaking his mind and had also earned US President Donald Trump’s ire for voting against the Republican-led effort to repeal Obamacare last year.
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