![]() I was lucky to know him and work with him and am comforted now by great memories of our times together and by the words he spoke to me last summer when he was recovering from the brain cancer surgery: ‘I want to live as long as I can but if my life ends soon as a result of this cancer, I will have been blessed to have lived a great life. America has lost one of the greatest patriots and public servants in our history. Joe Lieberman: “Although it was clear that John McCain’s life was ending, his death today hurts. Michelle and I send our most heartfelt condolences to Cindy and their family.”įormer Sen. At John’s best, he showed us what that means. But all of us can aspire to the courage to put the greater good above our own. “Few of us have been tested the way John once was, or required to show the kind of courage that he did. We saw this country as a place where anything is possible – and citizenship as our patriotic obligation to ensure it forever remains that way. We saw our political battles, even, as a privilege, something noble, an opportunity to serve as stewards of those high ideals at home, and to advance them around the world. But we shared, for all our differences, a fidelity to something higher – the ideals for which generations of Americans and immigrants alike have fought, marched, and sacrificed. America has lost one of its greatest patriots.”īarack and Michelle Obama: “John McCain and I were members of different generations, came from completely different backgrounds, and competed at the highest level of politics. “His ferocious tenacity for his country was unmatched. His personal dedication and leadership moved a very uncertain decision to a favorable outcome. He totally deployed his considerable strength and energy to what he believed was best for his country-and in service to those then fighting valiantly for the mission the nation had given them. His presidential aspirations were entirely set aside. “To me, having served with him in the Senate for 20 years, his support for President Bush’s surge in Iraq at a time when things had been going badly and public support had eroded, was one of the most dramatic, important, patriotic, and selfless actions I had the honor to witness in that body. Courage, determination, and relentless drive made him a great leader. God bless John McCain.”Īttorney General Jeff Sessions: “For John McCain, his country was his life. His family and friends will be in our prayers. We honor his lifetime of service to this nation in our military and in public life. Vice President Mike Pence: “Karen and I send our deepest condolences to Cindy and the entire McCain family on the passing of Senator John McCain. Thank you Senator McCain for your service to the nation.” Our hearts and prayers are with you!”įirst lady Melania Trump: “Our thoughts, prayers and deepest sympathy to the McCain Family. President Donald Trump: “My deepest sympathies and respect go out to the family of Senator John McCain. These are the messages of mourning and tribute to the Republican senator, war hero and conservative maverick. ![]() John McCain, who died Saturday at the age of 81. “To his family, to his God, and to his country.”ĭecades later when McCain ran for president in 2008, Crecca and his wife, Joan, were there to support him during a fundraising trip in Seattle, Washington.The political world is paying tribute to Sen. “He clearly was a man of extreme courage and of loyalty to the United States of America,” Crecca said. He turned down the offer until his comrades could also go home. “You knew you succeeded when you could hear the guy on the other side laughing.”Ĭrecca said McCain kept his spirits up, even through torture and the risk of “those communists re-breaking his arms.”ĭuring his time as a POW, McCain refused a preferential release offer, made because his father was an admiral. “We would pass humorous things through the wall,” Crecca told KCPQ. ![]() Like other American POWs, McCain and Crecca used a complex communication system known as tap code – tapping out messages on the wall of their cells – to communicate with each other. In captivity, McCain was tortured and beaten, an experience that left him with lifelong injuries, including severely restricted movement of his arms. He parachuted into a lake near Hanoi, breaking both arms and a leg, and was captured by communist soldiers. His Skyhawk jet was shot down over North Vietnam in 1967. ![]() McCain, who died Saturday at age 81, spent 5 1/2 years as a prisoner of war at Hoa Lo, known to most Americans as the “Hanoi Hilton.” It’s like steel,” Crecca, now 77, told CNN affiliate KCPQ-TV. ![]() “There’s a wall between us, but there’s an emotional bond between us that can’t be broken. They communicated by tapping on the wall. Crecca said his and McCain’s cells were next to one another. ![]()
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