Lindsey Graham, the garrulous son of South Carolina pool hall owners, rose to become a fixture on the global stage and one of the most prominent advocates of American military might in the U.S. Senate.
A former military lawyer who reached the rank of colonel in the Air Force, the wisecracking Graham was known for his Southern drawl, political flexibility and reliably hawkish stance on foreign policy. He ran for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016 as a determined opponent of Donald Trump, then became one of the new president’s staunchest allies.
In his typical high-energy manner, Graham had just returned to Washington from a trip to Ukraine, having announced a deal with the Trump administration for a new package of sanctions against Russia. He was due to appear on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday to discuss it. Trump appeared in the senator’s place.
“I just can’t believe it,” Trump said. “He was like a member of the family.”
Graham died Saturday night after what a preliminary report from the Washington, D.C., medical examiner’s office said was a tear in his aorta stemming from the hardening of his arteries. He was 71.
