President Trump praised Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) as a “true American Patriot” after the longtime politician died Saturday at the age of 71.
“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,” Trump posted on Truth Social early Sunday.
“Lindsey will be greatly missed!!!”
Trump said that funeral details and arrangements for Graham will be revealed in the coming days.
Graham’s office announced his death in a statement posted on social media, saying the South Carolina senator “passed away from a brief and sudden illness.”
Graham served in the Senate from 2003 until his death after representing South Carolina in the House of Representatives from 1995 to 2003.
He was chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee during Trump’s first term from 2019 to 2021 and later became one of the president’s closest allies on Capitol Hill, most recently backing the administration’s strikes on Iran.
The relationship between Trump and Graham changed dramatically over the years.
Graham was one of Trump’s sharpest Republican critics during the 2016 presidential campaign and even ran against him for the GOP nomination.
“If we nominate Trump, we will get destroyed … and we will deserve it,” Graham warned at the time.
After the 2016 election, however, the two became close political allies, with Graham emerging as an outspoken defender of Trump in the Senate.
Graham stood firmly behind Trump during both of the president’s impeachment trials, voting to acquit him each time.
He argued that Democrats were using impeachment as a political weapon, echoing Trump’s claim that the inquiry was a “lynching” and saying, “This is not about protecting the country — this is about destroying the president.
After Joe Biden won the 2020 election, Graham backed Trump’s efforts to challenge the results in several battleground states but ultimately accepted Biden’s victory after the Electoral College certified the results.
He also campaigned with Trump during the 2024 presidential race and was a key Trump ally on foreign policy and national security.
The two often aligned on military spending, support for Israel and taking a hard line against Iran, China and Russia, although Graham at times pushed for a more aggressive US role overseas than Trump favored.
In recent months, Graham was one of the strongest Republican voices backing Trump’s decision to strike Iran, arguing the military action was necessary to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon.
“I have a lot of respect for President Trump. He is his own man,” Graham told Axios in February.
“And as with all presidents, he will be held responsible for his decisions on such weighty matters. As to me, history will be very clear as to where I stood, for better or worse.”
