Senator Lindsey Graham has died on Saturday evening following a “brief and sudden illness.””On the evening of Saturday, July 11, U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham passed away from a brief and sudden illness,” his office said in a statement. “Senator Graham’s family appreciates prayers at this time and asks for privacy during this incredibly difficult period.”
No further detail on Graham’s death was immediately available, but a recording of an emergency phone call on Saturday evening to a residence belonging to the senator mentions a dispatch for cardiac arrest. Graham was scheduled to appear on NBC News’ “Meet the Press” on Sunday, according to the broadcaster.
President Trump paid tribute to the deceased senator, calling him “one of the greatest people and Senators I have ever known,” in a Truth Social post.
“He was always working, and was a true American Patriot. Lindsey will be greatly missed,” Mr. Trump said.
The prominent senator had been on a visit to Ukraine on Friday where he met with President Zelensky, who has since said he was “deeply saddened” by the news. Zelensky paid tribute to Graham’s 10 wartime visits to the country and his advocacy for Ukraine’s defense.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu paid tribute to Graham. “Sara and I grieve with the American people over the loss of our dear friend,” the prime minister said in a statement.
“Israel has lost one of its greatest friends. America has lost a great patriot. I have lost a beloved friend,” Netanyahu said.
Israel’s President Isaac Herzog said in a social media post he was “shocked and heartbroken to learn of the sudden passing of the great American patriot, a great friend of Israel, and my dear friend.”
Graham was born in Central, South Carolina, on July 9, 1955. He attended University of South Carolina for his undergraduate degree and stayed on for a law degree. After a stint in the military and a few years of private law practice, he served one term in the South Carolina House of Representatives. Two years later, he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, representing South Carolina’s Third District.
In 2002, he ran for the Senate seat once occupied by Strom Thurmond, and twice won reelection in 2008 and 2014 by robust margins. And even in 2014 when outside conservative groups threatened him with a primary challenge for his role in the 2013 immigration debate, no serious challenger emerged on the Republican stage.
He ran for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016 but dropped out before the primaries.
Graham was always an outspoken hawk on foreign policy matters, including on Iran, and earlier this month he came out strongly against the initial contours of the memorandum of understanding President Trump signed with the country.
Graham, initially a critic of Mr. Trump and the ascendant, conservative Tea Party movement, became a close ally and defender of the president.
“Let’s try a diplomatic solution. I think it’s going to fail. What happens next?” he said on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” just three weeks ago, a couple days after spending four and a half hours with the president. “To all the people listening, if this diplomatic effort fails, President Trump is going to take the Strait of Hormuz. We’re going to run it.”