At State funeral

There are funeral services and eulogies for great people but the one for American hero, Senator John McCain, will be remembered for long. All luminaries including former presidents and the family of John McCain gathered at the Washington National Cathedral to honour and remember the late senator in a grand display of unity. Amid praise for the life and legacy of McCain were frequent lamentations of Washington's current political climate. All put subtly, of course! The target, sans doubt, was President Donald Trump, who was asked not to attend at the late senator's request. There were tributes, of course, from, among others, former McCain rivals and Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama. And, an emotional remembrance from McCain's daughter, Meghan, that included several pointed references to Trump. "We gather here to mourn the passing of American greatness. The real thing, not cheap rhetoric from men who will never come near the sacrifice he gave so willingly," she said, overcome with emotion. "The America of John McCain has no need to be made great again because America was always great," she said at one point to sustained applause. Drawing a further contrast between her father and the current President, she said,"We live in an era where we knock down old American heroes for all their imperfections when no leader wants to admit to fault or failure." Bush remembered McCain as "courageous" and "honest, no matter whom it offended," adding that even "presidents were not spared." Former President Obama acknowledged the contrast between himself and McCain, saying,"We were standard-bearers of different American political traditions. "He spoke of a deep respect for the late senator. "For all our differences, for all the times we sparred, I never tried to hide and I think John came to understand, the long-standing admiration that I had for him." Obama also opened up about his behind-the-scenes relationship with McCain and the bond they shared across party lines. "We didn't advertise it, but every so often over the course of my presidency, John would come over to the White House and we would just sit and talk in the Oval Office, just the two of us", saying they discussed policy, family and politics. The remarks from former Democratic and Republican presidents who were once rivals to McCain sent a message of unity and bipartisanship at a time when Washington is deeply divided. McCain died at the age of 81 last Saturday after a lengthy battle with brain cancer. But, given his amazing track record both as a fighter, POW in Vietnam and doing justice as an effective Senator, he died a true hero.