President Donald Trump praised the late Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina as a “true American patriot” after Graham’s death Saturday at the age of 71 and revealed he spoke to Graham hours before the senator’s death.
“Senator Lindsey Graham, one of the greatest people and Senators I have ever known, is dead!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“He was always working, and was a true American Patriot. Lindsey will be greatly missed!!! DETAILS AND ARRANGEMENTS TO FOLLOW. So sad!”
Trump told NBC News he had spoken to the South Carolina Republican earlier Saturday evening, noting that “other than being tired, he was fine,”
Trump said Graham’s death was a “quick end, and maybe that’s not the worst way to go.”
Trump called Graham “like a member of the family to me” and said they spoke about the SAVE America Act, a piece of election integrity legislation Trump want Congress to pass.
“He actually said he was tired, but he wanted to pass the SAVE America Act, and I said, ‘Well, we’re going to get it done, Lindsey. We’re going to get it done. I’ll see you, like, soon,’” Trump said.
Trump told CNN that Graham spoke about his trip to Ukraine last week saying he “had a great trip.”
“If I had a problem, a real problem, I wouldn’t often ask. But if I had a problem with a Democrat, he could work it out,” Trump said. “He was a great, he was a great politician, actually.”
Trump noted Graham could be a “tough cookie.”
“If he wanted to get something, if he thought he was right, and he had people against him, he could be very tough, actually,” the president said. “But he was a good person.”
First responders had been called to Graham’s home at about 8:30 p.m. for a person suffering chest pains, according to The Washington Post.
About 25 minutes later, a transmission said a man at the home suffered cardiac arrest.
At about 9:30 p.m. a man, later revealed to be Graham, was wheeled out on a stretcher and taken to George Washington University Hospital.
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster will appoint someone to fill out Graham’s term, which ends in January.
McMaster said Graham was “the fiercest of fighters for South Carolina and America — and a loyal and steadfast friend.”
Graham had recently won a GOP primary for his seat. A special election will be held in the coming weeks to replace him on the ballot.
Graham and Trump first met as rivals for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination, with Graham firm in his opposition to Trump even after Trump became the Republican nominee.
But after Trump was in the White House, the two became friends.
“He’s outstanding. He’s been at my side for a long time,” Trump said last month.
“After that fight was over, we were best of friends, and he’s helped me as much as anybody in the Senate.”
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