WASHINGTON (AP) — Congressional leaders saluted John McCain Friday as a model of service in war and peace and "one of the bravest souls our nation has ever produced," in a memorial ceremony at the heart of the political battlefield where he fought for more than three decades.

Then thousands of fellow Americans, who had lined up outside the U.S. Capitol in stifling heat, began filing past in the majestic rotunda to say goodbye as he lay in state.

McCain, the Arizona senator who died Saturday at 81, was remembered as a man who inspired other leaders even as he vexed them with a rebellious streak...