Arizona Sen. John McCain passed away Saturday afternoon at the age of 81 and hundreds of people from both sides of the aisle took to Twitter to offer their condolences and well-wishes for the family.
McCain was was diagnosed with glioblastoma brain cancer in July 2017 and underwent various treatments, including both chemotherapy and radiation over the last year. His family announced Friday that the senator would discontinue treatment, thanking everyone for their love and support.
President Donald Trump offered his sympathies in a tweet Saturday afternoon, shortly after the news was announced.
His daughter, Meghan McCain, posted a touching tribute to her father online praising him as a "hero of the republic."
McCain's former opponent in the 2008 presidential contest, President Barack Obama, offered his own tribute in a statement released by his office.
"John McCain and I were members of different generations, came from completely different backgrounds, and competed at the highest level of politics. But we shared, for all our differences, a fidelity to something higher - the ideals for which generations of Americans and immigrants have fought, marched, and sacrificed. 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. We saw this country as a place where anything is possible - and citizenship as our patriotic obligation to ensure it forever remains that way.
Few of us have been tested the way John once was, or required to show the kind of courage that he did. But all of us can aspire to the courage to put the greater good above out own. At John's best, he showed us what that means. And for that, we are all in his debt. Michelle and I send our most heartfelt condolences to Cindy and their family."
- Barack and Michelle Obama
Steve Schmidt, McCain's campaign manager during the 2008 election wrote in a tweet that the Arizona Senator "belongs to the ages."
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