Friends and colleagues in Washington said their final farewells to the late Hawaii Sen. Daniel Inouye Friday at a memorial service at the Washington National Cathedral.

President Barack Obama says Sen. Inouye showed him "what might be possible in my own life."

Pres. Obama recalled a boyhood memory of watching Inouye during the Watergate hearings.  He said the experience left him with a sense of what serving in government was all about.  He said he had watched a man full of "grace and dignity."

The president said, quote, "Danny Inouye was perhaps my earliest political inspiration."

Other political leaders hailed Inouye for his career, spirit and selflessness.

Vice President Joe Biden said, quote: "When people talked about loving Danny, they meant it."

Former President Bill Clinton hailed the late Democratic senator as "one of the most remarkable Americans I have ever known."

At the service filled with dignitaries, Clinton called Inouye courageous without being sanctimonious, and a friend to both the former president and his wife, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.

On the biggest and toughest moments for America, Clinton said Inouye was "telling us what we needed to know."

During his time in office, Clinton presented Inouye, a war hero, with the Medal of Honor.