Tony Blair on Margaret Thatcher: "She saw America as a beacon of liberty"

As Monday marked the passing of Margaret Thatcher's, "Piers Morgan Live" welcomed fellow former British Prime Minister Tony Blair to share his first-hand perspective and unparalleled insight into the life and legacy of a woman nicknamed "Iron Lady" for her tough-minded approach to politics and leadership alike.

Despite being on opposite sides of the political aisle, Blair insisted that Thatcher's importance and influence was undeniable:

"You've got to accept she was a huge figure, a towering figure," said Blair, who moved into the famed 10 Downing Street address seven years after Thatcher. "There are very few leaders that get the chance and have the ability to change not only their own national landscape, but the global landscape, and she did that."

The only female to have ever been prime minister, and the longest-serving such politician of the 20th century, Thatcher prioritized the managing of a close relationship with the United States, for strategic reasons, but also personal:

"She had a love and regard for America that was genuine, and that derived from the fact that she saw America as a beacon of liberty in a world in which there often wasn't liberty for millions and millions of people," Blair noted to Piers Morgan. "It wasn't just an alliance for her that was based on political necessity. It was based on a deeply held personal belief."

Watch the clip, and listen to the interview, as Blair shares further reaction to the passing of one of the most polarizing and divisive figures in British political history.
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