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U.S. Vice President Joe Biden called Nelson Mandela "the most remarkable man" he'd ever met as he paused before a statue of the former leader outside the South African embassy in Washington D.C..
Biden recalled a trip he'd made as a senator to South Africa, and how his request to a then imprisoned Mandela had been denied. Years later after Mandela was elected president, Biden said the South African leader thanked him for his support of sanctions against apartheid.
The Vice President also marveled at Mandela's warmth and forgiveness for his captors.
"He (Mandela) said, 'I learned to like my jailers. They were just doing a job.'"
Biden signed the condolence book for Mandela who died on Thursday (Dec. 5) at age 95.
