Hillary Clinton says John McCain 'understood in the marrow of his bones what it meant to be an American'

"I think we could all talk for hours about what he meant to the country, what he meant to the Senate, what he meant to a lot of us individually," Hillary Clinton said of the late Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) on Meet the Press Sunday. "He leaves a legacy of service and courage."

Clinton particularly highlighted McCain's ability to work productively across the aisle in Washington. "He knew that the Senate couldn't work if we didn't work together," she said. "He really understood in the marrow of his bones what it meant to be an American, and how important it was for us to, yes, disagree and differ, but at the end of the day to come together, to work together, to trust each other to get things done."

Clinton's fellow Democrat, Sen. Dick Durbin (Ill.), hit on similar points when he memorialized McCain on Face the Nation. "I remember those moments of uncommon decency, which is unfortunately in short supply on the American political scene," Durbin said. McCain had "kind of political courage that isn't displayed very often," he added. "I hope it's displayed more in his memory."

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Listen to a clip of Clinton's comments below. Bonnie Kristian