Thomas Daschle: “Today is the funeral of another American. This American fought for 50 years, in her own inimitable way, to defend the…”

“Today is the funeral of another American. This American fought for 50 years, in her own inimitable way, to defend the ideals of our democracy. Mary McGrory was the most elegant political writer I have ever known, and one of the bravest. She loved many things in life: a well-told tale, a good joke, good books, good dogs, orphans, lazy August days in Italy, time with her family in Boston, and almost everything about her Irish-American heritage. Most of all, Mary McGrory loved politics and newspapering. I sometimes thought she had newspaper ink in her veins. She never tired of asking questions, chasing stories or writing truth. I can't count the number of times that I have held press briefings in the hallway just off this floor, surrounded by two or three dozen reporters, all jostling for position. And there, among them, was Mary, reporter's notebook in hand. She was 40, 50 years older than some of the other reporters, but there she was, in the thick of it. She didn't need to be there. She could have asked a colleague to pose her question for her and relay the answer to her. But that was not the way of Mary McGrory. She had an extraordinary eye for the telling detail. She wanted to see and hear things herself, and form her own judgments. President Nixon put her on his enemies list, but many of us adored her. In the last year, a stroke robbed Mary of her legendary ability to find just the right word.”