USA: John McCain, a Last Lion of the Senate - by Carl Hulse

 John McCain was an essential element of the nation’s political conversation for half a century, an ever-present figure eager to challenge friend and foe through his singular temperament — sometimes angry, often funny, always ardent.

Now he is gone, leaving behind a storied life and a tear in America’s political fabric at a time when national unity — always a McCain theme and ultimate goal — seems especially elusive.

“We are losing someone who really, no matter who was the president, believed in the Senate’s role in checks and balances,” said Senator Susan Collins, Republican of Maine, who was a frequent traveling companion of Mr. McCain on official overseas trips. “He truly was a giant in the Senate, a towering figure and someone who really made a difference not just on policy, but in asserting the Senate’s constitutional role.”

Read  more: John McCain, a Last Lion of the Senate - The New York Times