Former President George W. Bush praised Arizona Sen. John McCain’s (R) honesty and courage Saturday during the late senator’s funeral service in Washington, D.C., noting that even presidents found themselves subject to McCain’s straight-talk.
{mosads}”He was courageous, with a courage that frightened his captors and inspired his countrymen. He was honest no matter whom it offended. Presidents were not spared,” Bush told the audience assembled at the Washington National Cathedral.
During his eulogy for McCain, Bush also remembered the senator’s ability to see his most profound ideological opponents as human beings who loved their country.
“He was honorable, always recognizing that his opponents were still patriots and human beings,” Bush continued. “He loved freedom with the passion of a man who knew its absence.”
Bush went on, praising McCain’s commitment to standing up for working-class Americans against powerful interests in Washington and elsewhere.
“There was something deep inside him that made him stand up for the little guy,” Bush said.
Bush spoke at McCain’s funeral along with former President Obama and other friends and family of the late senator.
The Arizona senator died last week at the age of 81 after being diagnosed with brain cancer. He will be buried Sunday at his alma mater, the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md.