Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, a longtime lawmaker who ran against Donald Trump in 2016, railed against his takeover of the Republican Party and went on to serve as one of Trump’s most loyal allies — even regularly playing golf with him — has died at the age of 71.
The senator’s death was sudden, as he had just returned from a trip to Ukraine. He had even been scheduled to appear on NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday, a show on which he had appeared 63 times. Graham had been running for re-election to a fifth Senate term this year, having previously served in the House.
Per The Daily Mail, Graham’s death was due to “a brief and sudden illness.” NBC News reported that he had suffered a cardiac arrest at his home in Washington.
President Trump eulogized his friend on Truth Social, stating, “Senator Lindsey Graham, one of the greatest people and Senators I have ever known, is dead! He was always working and was a true American Patriot. Lindsey will be greatly missed!!! DETAILS AND ARRANGEMENTS TO FOLLOW. So sad!”
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After running a long shot campaign from president in 2016 and losing to Trump, Graham was for a time a loud critic of Trump’s takeover of the party. But around the time of Trump’s first election, Graham did a dramatic about-face and became one of Trump’s most passionate defenders. This was attributed to conspiratorial motives, but more likely Graham was motivated by his need to get re-elected in a red state.
On the night of January 6, 2021, however, Graham gave a memorable speech in which declared “Trump and I, we’ve had a hell of a journey. I hate it to end this way. Oh my God, I hate it. From my point of view, he’s been a consequential president, but today, first thing you’ll see. All I can say is a count me out. Enough is enough.”
Sen. @LindseyGrahamSC: “Mr. Vice President, just hang in there…you’re going to do the right thing…it is over…Joe Biden and Kamala Harris are lawfully elected and will become the President and the Vice President of the United States on January the 20th.” pic.twitter.com/FJGz8gc9Qx
— CSPAN (@cspan) January 7, 2021
It was not, however, how it ended, as Graham remained a Trump ultra-loyalist in the president’s second term.
Photo courtesy of the Political Tribune media library.
