The last farewell ceremony with John McCain took place in Washington

On September 1, a memorial service was held in Washington in honor of Senator John McCain, who passed away on August 25 in the 81 year of life after years of struggle with brain cancer. Saturday was the third and final day of farewell to the military hero of America and the world-famous politician. McCain’s body will be interred on Sunday, September 2, in the presence of family members.

Фото: Depositphotos

The service began around 10 in the morning and ended at 12: 30 local time, writes CBS News. Thursday farewell to McCain passed in his home state of arizonawhere his friends and some public figures, including former Vice President Joe Biden, spoke at the ceremony. Thousands of citizens had the opportunity to pay tribute to the senator during a public farewell at the State Capitol.

Today, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko will also fly in to say goodbye to McCain - according to media reports, he will visit the senator’s family privately and will not speak in public.

Farewell to the Capitol

Photo: YouTube / Washington Post screenshot

On Friday, McCain's casket was placed in the center of the rotunda at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, a part only thirty-one people have ever been honored with. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Speaker Paul Ryan and Vice President Mike Pence spoke at the morning ceremony.

Present here were not only the wife and children of the late McCain, but also his 106-year-old mother Roberta McCain, who held the hand of her granddaughter, the daughter of the senator, Meghan McCain.

Photo: YouTube / Washington Post screenshot

Roberta McCain a few years ago suffered a stroke, which caused speech problems, says Time. John McCain wrote about this in a book published this year. But, he says, she has "a spark, a light in her eyes that will light up the world." The son talked about how his mother loved to travel before her illness, and expressed hope that it would be possible for her to return to her old life.

In previous interviews, she has spoken of her special bond with her son John. “That poor soul,” she said. "I really think he's a lot like me, too emotional."

The deceased's mother was taken to a coffin in a wheelchair, she crossed herself and said a few words, addressing her son.

Photo: YouTube / Washington Post screenshot

Famous members of Congress, former Supreme Court judge Anthony Kennedy, Attorney General Jeff Sessions, and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, as well as actors Annette Bening and Warren Beatty, took part in the ceremony on Friday.

Photo: YouTube / Washington Post screenshot

Ceremony at the National Cathedral

On Saturday, before the ceremony, the children and wife of McCain arrived at the Vietnam Memorial, accompanied by Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and White House Chief of Staff John Kelly, where they laid wreaths. After that, the family went to the National Cathedral of Washington.

Photo: YouTube Screenshot / The New York Times

In the National Cathedral of Washington attended by many invited guests: politicians, diplomats, cultural workers and artists, representatives of the church, writes Voice of America. Former New Hampshire Senator Kelly Ayotte, McCain's eldest daughter, Sydney, and Senator Lindsay Graham read Bible passages.

President Donald Trump was not invited to any of the farewell ceremonies in memory of McCain, such was the decision of the senator before his death. This decision is seen by many as a reproach to Trump. The feud between Donald Trump and his fellow party member Senator John McCain began during Trump's election campaign in 2016, when Trump allowed himself a mocking replica of McCain, who was shot down over Hanoi during the Vietnam War, and the naval pilot hit in captivity.

“He’s not a war hero,” Trump said at the time. - He is not a war hero because he was captured. I like people who don't give in."

Obama and Bush Speeches

Former US Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama gave speeches while serving in the Washington National Cathedral. Both of them once bypassed McCain in presidential campaigns, but the senator himself asked Bush and Obama to read the eulogies at his funeral during his lifetime.

Photo: YouTube Screenshot / The New York Times

“We come to honor an extraordinary man: a warrior, a statesman, a patriot,” Barack Obama said. He referred to his rivalry with McCain during the 2008 presidential election: “He made us better presidents, just as he made the Senate and the entire nation better,” the former president added.

Obama spoke of how surprised he was to be personally invited by McCain to speak at his funeral. He said it showed the senator's "rebellious" and "mischievous" traits and "the breadth of his spirit."

“After all, what better way to get one last laugh than to hear me and George (Bush) say nice things about him to a national audience,” Obama joked. “For all our differences, I think John realized how long I’ve admired him.”

“He really understood that some principles transcend politics, that some values ​​transcend party,” Obama said. There was also an indirect reproach to Trump's policies. McCain, he said, held the belief that citizenship "is not based on our ancestry, who we look like, what our last names are, where our parents and grandparents came from, or how long ago it was."

“May God bless John McCain. May God bless this country that he served so well,” Barack Obama said at the end of his speech. The senator's widow, Cindy McCain, hugged him after the speech.

Photo: YouTube Screenshot / The New York Times

Ex-President George W. Bush also spoke at the funeral of McCain. Recall that he also bypassed the senator in the presidential election in 2000.

“There are lives so vibrant that it’s hard to imagine them ending,” Bush said of McCain. “His absence is palpable, like silence after a mighty roar.”

Like Obama, Bush mentioned his earlier rivalry with McCain.

“Once upon a time he scared me. And I know he would say the same about me. But he made me a better person,” Mr. Bush said. The ex-president admitted that past rivalry had dissolved into friendship. Bush contrasted McCain with current leaders in the country and around the world.

“Above all, John hated the abuse of power. He could not surpass fanatics and extol despots. In the face of those in power, John McCain insisted: “We are better than this. America is better than this." The world is a smaller place since he left,” Bush said, adding that America will remember him as “steadfast, unwavering, unsurpassed.”

Speeches of politicians and families

Photo: YouTube Screenshot / The New York Times

Former US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger said his word in memory of McCain: “Our country was fortunate that several great personalities appeared during the national ordeals. John McCain was one of those gifts of fate. ”

“In all the times we were together, I never heard him say an offensive word about anyone,” Lieberman admitted. “The name John McCain, based on the actions of the man John McCain, became a source of hope and inspiration for the oppressed around the world,” the ally added, referring to the late senator's global reputation.

Megan McCain, co-host of The View on ABC, was the first to pay homage to her father’s memory.

“I stand before you today to say the words I never wanted to say,” Meghan began her speech. “We gather here to mourn the passing of American greatness.”

Photo: YouTube Screenshot / The New York Times

In her speech, McCain gave a few hidden references to President Trump’s policies, condemning the “cheap rhetoric” of modern US politics and hinting at men who avoided service during the Vietnam War (Trump had five deferments from military service).

But she dedicated most of her speech to McCain as a father. “John McCain is the best, his greatest title is, and his most important role is that of a father,” Meghan said. “My father knew the kind of pain and suffering that most of us are blessed to never experience. But he survived, he endured, he won.”

She described “John McCain's America” as America of the Revolution, Abraham Lincoln and the military.

"John McCain's America is generous, welcoming and brave," she said. And she made another hint at Trump: “John McCain’s America doesn’t need to become great again, because America always has been.”

The audience responded with applause.

“My father is gone and my sadness is great, but I know his life is great because it was good,” Meghan McCain concluded.

Photo: YouTube Screenshot / The New York Times

The memorial service ended approximately two and a half hours after it began. A military convoy carried the coffin with the senator from the cathedral.

Senator McCain will be buried with military honors after a private service in the chapel of the Academy of the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, on Sunday. The body will be interred in the presence of exclusively family members.

Read also on ForumDaily:

Senator McCain's Farewell Words Published

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Senator John McCain died: how was one of the most strong-willed politicians of our time

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