Senator Lindsey Graham, a pivotal figure in US Senate negotiations and a key ally of Donald Trump, died on Saturday at the age of 71 after a brief and sudden illness, his office announced. During his 23 years representing South Carolina, Graham developed a reputation as a dealmaker, frequently appearing at the center of critical talks with Democrats and members of his own party.
Role in ending government shutdown
Earlier this year, when Democrats and Republicans were locked in a standoff that plunged the Department of Homeland Security into the longest partial government shutdown in US history, Graham announced that the budget committee he chairs would work on a measure to fund agencies leading Trump's mass deportation campaign. This move helped rally the GOP behind a plan that reopened DHS. It was a familiar role for Graham, who played a major part in many legislative breakthroughs.
Bipartisan reputation
Dick Durbin, the number two Senate Democrat, said: “Lindsey was part of every important policy issue and an indispensable player in every Senate ‘gang’. He was a fierce Republican partisan one day and a key bipartisan ally the next.” Despite his public image as a partisan, Graham repeatedly worked across the aisle on thorny issues. He was part of the “gang of 14” that brokered a compromise on confirming George W. Bush’s judicial nominees, and the “gang of eight” that attempted immigration reform.
Foreign policy hawk
Graham was a lifelong foreign policy hawk. He supported the 2003 invasion of Iraq and the use of Guantánamo Bay. Under Trump, he cheered the attack on Iran without congressional authorization and the commando raid that captured Nicolás Maduro. However, he also worked across the aisle on foreign policy priorities that drew less White House enthusiasm. He was steadfast in advocating for aid to Ukraine and joined Democratic senator Richard Blumenthal in introducing a bill to impose sanctions on Syria’s government.
Domestic legislative impact
Graham voted for Supreme Court justices nominated by Bush, Obama, and Trump, but opposed Biden’s nomination of Ketanji Brown Jackson. He was among 15 Republicans who voted for a gun violence package after the Uvalde massacre. As chair of the budget committee, he led the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which funded much of Trump’s domestic priorities. Stephen Miller, White House deputy chief of staff, recalled: “I’ll never forget the Senate lunch, when a couple senators were a tad off the program, and Lindsey – in his inimitable way – made sure everyone was onside by the time we left. It was a glorious thing to witness. He knew how to move a room.”
Lasting legacy
Democratic senator Chris Coons said: “While we disagreed fiercely on many policy issues, he was complicated and could not be pigeonholed. Several of my most important bills I have passed were with Lindsey, from conservation in Africa to promoting balanced American engagement with fragile states. I will miss having him as a partner in the Senate.” Graham was doing deals until the end. The day before his death, he was among a bipartisan group of four senators who announced a deal with the Trump administration on a bill to punish countries buying Russian oil and gas. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, after meeting Graham in Kyiv, wrote: “It is important that our long-range sanctions pressure on Russia be reinforced through new sanctions steps by our partners. Lindsey briefed me on the work underway in Congress on the relevant bill.”
