WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell released the following statement mourning the passing of former Senate colleague, astronaut and veteran, John Glenn:

“Today our nation bids farewell to one of the most iconic figures of the 20th Century. John Glenn said his childhood was like something out of a Norman Rockwell painting, but his life was anything but typical. From flying combat missions over Korea and the South Pacific as a Marine Corps aviator to a post-orbit splashdown in the Atlantic, he’d come a long way from small-town Ohio by the time his constituents elected him to serve in a different capacity — something they would do many times over the course of Senator Glenn’s congressional service. Elaine and I send our condolences to Annie and the rest of the Glenn family.”