Senator Lindsey Graham, the Republican from South Carolina who evolved from a fierce critic of Donald Trump into one of his closest allies, died on Saturday evening at the age of 71 after a “brief and sudden illness”, his office announced. Preliminary findings from the medical examiner suggest the cause was a rupture of his aorta, a key artery in the heart. He had returned only the day before from Kyiv, where he met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, and no health concerns had been noted ahead of the trip. President Trump told NBC News he spoke with Graham hours before his death: “He sounded great – a little tired,” Trump said, adding that Graham was “a tough cookie” and “a good person”. The White House flag was flown at half mast to mark his passing.
Graham’s career was defined by a remarkable political turnaround. Elected to the Senate in 2002, he first rose as a close ally of Senator John McCain, known for his independent streak. When Graham ran for president in 2015, he promised to “open up a bar in the White House, get liquored up and solve problems”. But as Trump surged, Graham became his most vocal opponent, branding him a “jackass” after Trump mocked McCain’s war record, and later a “race-baiting, xenophobic, religious bigot”. In a famous 2016 tweet, he warned: “If we nominate Trump, we will get destroyed … and we will deserve it.” After Trump read out Graham’s phone number at a rally, prompting a torrent of angry calls, Graham destroyed a collection of mobile phones in a stunt video.
“Senator Lindsey Graham dies aged 71 after sudden illness; Trump ally evolved from critic to close confidant.”
Once Trump won the presidency, Graham’s attitude shifted dramatically. He became a steadfast defender, golfing regularly with the president and championing his policies – from the killing of Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani to the appointment of conservative judges. After the Capitol riots in 2021, Graham told the Senate: “Trump and I, we’ve had a hell of a journey. I hate it to end this way. All I can say is count me out. Enough is enough.” But he later voted to acquit Trump in his second impeachment trial and supported his 2024 election bid. “There is a dark side to Donald Trump … but I am sticking with him because I saw what he did,” he told the BBC in 2023.
Graham was a foreign policy hawk who pushed for US intervention abroad, strong support for Israel and regime change in Iran. He recently told CBS the US would “obliterate” Iran if it did not submit. His ability to adapt to the shifting political climate made him a survivor – a quality that, as one analysis noted, even his opponents on the antiwar left and hard right might do well to study. The question now is how his absence will reshape the Republican foreign policy debate.
