Senator Graham died of a heart attack. There are tears, cheers, and repercussions.
Lindsey Graham, Republican Senator and Staunch Trump Ally, Dies at 71
The New York Times reports Lindsey Graham, Republican Senator and Staunch Trump Ally, Dies at 71
He died from “a brief and sudden illness,” his office said. Over more than two decades in the Senate, he consistently pushed for the use of U.S. military power overseas.
Lindsey Graham, a Republican senator from South Carolina and a onetime opponent turned stalwart ally of President Trump who was a forceful advocate for an interventionist U.S. foreign policy, died on Saturday evening. He was 71.
He died from “a brief and sudden illness,” his office said in a statement early Sunday. No further details were provided. After recently returning from a trip to Ukraine, Mr. Graham had been scheduled to appear on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday morning.
Mr. Trump offered his condolences on social media early Sunday, calling Mr. Graham “one of the greatest people and Senators I have ever known.”
“He was always working, and was a true American Patriot,” Mr. Trump added. “Lindsey will be greatly missed!!!”
Trump then and Now
There is no need for me to state my opinion of Graham. I will let Trump do so.
President Trump 2019
“Lindsey Graham would like to stay in the Middle East for the next thousand years with thousands of soldiers fighting other people’s wars. I want to get out of the Middle East…I won an election based on that.”
Graham on Trump
Trump Glad that Robert Mueller Died
Sarcasm Missed
More Graham on Trump
“If we nominate Trump, we will get destroyed… and we will deserve it”
In 2016, Lindsey Graham saw the future perfectly. He just spent the rest of his career ensuring it happened anyway. A legacy defined by the very thing he once warned us about.
Graham Correctly Understood Trump
Lindsey Graham Says “Trump Is a Jackass”
Caught on Tape
CAUGHT ON TAPE: A video of Trump is going viral from 2016 when he publicly exposed Graham’s phone number to get back at him for calling him a “jackass.” Graham was forced to change his number.
Don’t Celebrate His Death
Not only death abroad, but the death of Robert Mueller.
An Understandable Reaction
Tucker Chimes In
Got Popcorn?
There is no need to say anything bad about Graham. Both Graham and Trump made perfectly valid claims on each other.
Factor in Tucker, and enjoy the infighting.
Political Realities
The political reality is the Senate is down a key supporter of the SAVE Act and nuking the Filibuster.
Unfortunately, that’s temporary.
South Carolina has Rules on Special Elections that allow the Governor to make a temporary appointment.
SECTION 7-19-20. Filling vacancies in office of United States Senator.
In case of a vacancy in the office of United States Senator from death, resignation or otherwise, the Governor may fill the place by appointment which shall be for the period of time intervening between the date of such appointment and January third following the next succeeding general election. But in the event any such vacancy shall occur less than one hundred days prior to any general election, the appointment shall be for the period of time intervening between the date of such appointment and January third following the second general election next succeeding. The Governor shall within five days after any such appointment order an election to be held in connection with and at the time of the general election immediately preceding the expiration date of such appointment if at the expiration of such appointment an unexpired term shall remain.
Quick Special Election Coming Up
The Washington Post comments on the Special Election.
A special election will take place quickly
Graham won the Republican Senate primary last month and was the heavy favorite to win November’s general election in conservative South Carolina. Now the party must find a new candidate through a special election, according to state law.
The filing period will open the second Tuesday after Graham’s death, which falls on July 21. Candidates will then have one week, through July 28, to declare their interest in filling his seat. A special primary will take place two weeks later, on Aug. 11. If no candidate wins outright, a runoff will take place two weeks after that, on Aug. 25.
It is likely to be highly competitive
Graham held his Senate seat for more than two decades, essentially locking out a generation of ambitious South Carolina politicians. There could be a scramble among Republicans for what has the potential to become a lifetime position in a deep-red state.
South Carolina has six sitting GOP House members, including Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman, who both gave up their seats to run unsuccessfully for governor this year. A person familiar with Mace’s thinking confirmed that she is strongly considering running for Senate.
South Carolina’s crowded gubernatorial primary also included Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette, Trump’s initial pick, who lost in a runoff. Graham faced a primary challenge from the right in business owner Mark Lynch, who received nearly 29 percent of the vote in June.
In the end, Trump may have the decisive voice in Graham’s replacement, given the outsize weight his endorsement carries in the Republican Party. Trump said Sunday morning on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that there is “somebody that I think would be great” to fill Graham’s seat, though he declined to share the name because it was “too soon.” He added, “I don’t want to even talk about anybody, but I do have somebody that I think is really good.”
Senate Republicans Will Miss Graham’s Vote
When the Senate returns this week from recess, Republicans will be down two members. In addition to Graham, Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) has been hospitalized since last month, with little clarity about his condition.
Now the GOP will have only the barest majority to pursue its agenda, including the confirmation of Trump’s controversial nominee for attorney general, Todd Blanche, who is scheduled for a hearing on Wednesday. Despite holding a 53-47 edge, the GOP has increasingly struggled to keep its caucus together on key votes due to ideological clashes between Trump and more moderate Republicans.
There is not much time for them to act. The Senate plans to work for the next four weeks, then take off for another month, returning in mid-September.
Effective Majority Is 51-47
With McConnell hospitalized and Graham gone, the current effective Senate Republican majority is down to 51-47.
This will make it much harder to pass any legislation. Republicans can afford only a single dissent until Graham is replaced.
But even after Graham is replaced, McConnell has voted with Trump far more often than not, although they do not see eye-to-eye on the filibuster or the SAVE Act.
Political Realities
The Polymarket SAVE Act odds of passage remain 8 percent.
The odds of passing another reconciliation bill this year are only 48 percent.
If a reconciliation bill is not passed by the end of September, there will not be another try. The Senate will be on recess for most of October in advance of the midterm elections.
Thus, the McConnell and Graham setup makes legislation of any kind much more difficult.
Moreover, foolish efforts by Republicans to attach the SAVE Act to military spending bill might kill it.
Can Vance Overrule the Parliamentarian to Force SAVE Act Passage?
Yesterday, I asked Can Vance Overrule the Parliamentarian to Force SAVE Act Passage?
Vance can overrule the Parliamentarian. However, the answer to the question as phrased is no.
The answer is no. The absence of Graham complicates matters further.
There is a lot of meaningless chatter on X about Ted Cruz replacing McConnell on the Senate Rules Committee. It’s meaningless.
The votes are still not there. There’s actually one less vote to kill the filibuster, and that’s what’s needed to pass the SAVE Act.
Click the above link for the vote counts on SAVE and ending the filibuster.
Graham’s plane landed in the US at 7 P.M. local time on his way back from Ukraine and we “know” that he wasn’t already burning in Hell only because Trump says that he spoke briefly with him on the phone and because Graham’s own office says so. A very few hours later that same night emergency services were called at his house and found him dead.
On his day in Kiev he visited drone factories which were hit by drones and missiles that very same day.
Isn’t it beautifully poetic that wether he suffered a cardiocirculatory event (for which he was genetically predisposed and which his 28 hour trip back home would be a great trigger for) or he was killed by a Russian bomb, he died because of one of his warmongering trips..?
Chris Christy, on ABC’s This Week with George S., once said that Repugnants would tell him in private that they disagreed or even hated Trump or at least hated defending him. The panel asked for names. When pressured enough he gave up just one name: Lindsey Graham. Two-faced is about the one thing that I despise most about any human being. So yes, I despise most of the Uniparty.
Well now whats up with mm and realistically will he be able to step back into work before he retires.
We all know the deal, the GOP will keep Mitch alive with breathing apparatus until the midterms then they will turn off the machine and Mitch will die, having served his purpose of obstructing the function of Congress during his brain dead vacation.
I walked by him once in person, he was one of the tiniest men I ever met!
Anything called ‘save’ can’t be good
Great obituary Mish!
Graham is a war monger who celebrated the death and destruction we’ve wreaked across the Middle East. For that reason alone we should all smile that Hell got a little more crowded today.
What an evil man.
Celebrate good times, people – Graham is dead!
Kool & The Gang – Get Down On It
Isn’t this the video you meant to post?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qchPLaiKocI
That would be a good one to dance on his grave to.
I’d piss on it.
Hard to tell how much the resurfaced McConnell is really there — or just a frail wraith propped up in a bed for a picture (with his wife’s steadying hand on his back). “His” statement doesn’t clarify it. He was already kicked upstairs, but these guys are falling fast!
“Won an election based on that”.
He also just said recently we’re prepared to be at war for a year or longer.
SOS
It’s so sad that he never had a child he could send to fight for “Izrul”.
AIPAC had over $1 million invested in him. Fortunately, they recouped theit investment years ago.
I understand there’s an old adage that death comes in threes. Could we be so lucky?
I nominate Ted Cruz and Tom Cotton.
We need a Dem or two to achieve balance!
“A brief and sudden illness”. I never knew a heart attack to be described this way. I suppose a beheading would be lacerations to the neck area…
It’s pretty weird, for the party that claims to be the most transparent administration in the history of all history, why can’t they just say the fucker died from a heart attack? The level of bullshit is way beyond anything sane. To cover up is so automatic.
I’m surprised they didn’t copy his voice and keep on going with the assurance that “I just spent 17 minutes talking to him about Iran, the midterms, and teabagging”
One of the few posts you make here that I can agree with. Thumbs up.
I thought it was the Dems who were the ones that made up creative descriptor names, primarily to avoid triggering the artificial sensibilities of their bleeding-heart proponents.
Was it the dems who nicknamed her Pocahontas? How about Sleepy Joe and Cankles?
They are putting out AI images of McConnell to make it look like he is fine in his hospital bed. Think Mitch isn’t brain dead on a breathing machine through midterms? You don’t know the deepest depths of the depravity of US politics.
Did the AI pics show McConnell’s Red Chinese puppet strings being pulled by his wife?
A brief sudden hypersonic missile befell him.
According to information provided Sunday afternoon by Graham’s office, the preliminary examination found, “Aortic Dissection due to Arteriosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease.”
According to the Mayo Clinic, an aortic dissection is a medical emergency that occurs when a tear develops in the inner layer of the aorta, the body’s largest artery. Blood rushes through the tear, causing the inner and middle layers of the artery wall to separate. If blood breaks through the outside wall of the aorta, the condition is often fatal.
The Mayo Clinic says aortic dissections are uncommon and most often occur in men in their 60s and 70s.
Arteriosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease is a buildup of plague inside the arteries. Experts say that can eventually cause a blood clot which could lead to a heart attack or stroke.
The medical examiner said Graham’s death certificate isn’t finalized, however.
https://www.wltx.com/article/news/local/preliminary-findings-in-sen-lindsey-graham-death/101-37124328-8f54-4d6d-bf7b-ea21cd0d8ea6
Graham’s dad died of a heart attack at age 69. heart problems tend to be genetic but of course, exacerbated by how you live your life.
And jet flights where you sit for a long time in reduced O2 environment are known to foster blood clots in some people.
He also had a 10 hr ride on a train from Kiev to Warsaw unless he got a military medical evacuation plane.
Understanding Your Risk for Blood Clots with Travel | Venous Thromboembolism (Blood Clots) | CDC
https://www.cdc.gov/blood-clots/risk-factors/travel.html
When the Constitution was ratified, the average life expectancy was 40 years and the minimum age to become POTUS was 35. In 250 years the life expectancy has doubled, but the POTUS is still required to be at least 35 years old. So basically the Founding Fathers thought POTUS would be someone with a lot of life experience and leave office before senility took place. They just assumed voters would be rational to elect someone not showing signs of senility that no upper age limit was placed on any federal candidate.
Well, we really need age limits. Both parties have run candidates with dementia who won. Adverse health events of geriatric elected officials is disruptive to democracy. I would limit candidacy to anyone younger than 70 on Election day.
The voters the Founders assumed would be “rational” (i.e., like-minded) were all white male landowners. Since that has changed, it follows that their connotation of “rational” has similarly changed. And unsurprisingly, to their advantage.
To whose advantage? You don’t really specify anything other than the founding fathers. I’m not sure it’s advantageous to them considering they’re all dead.
Sorry, I was not clear. The ideological successors to the Founders are white supremacist billionaire capitalists.
In one of my favorite books, States of Credit: Size, Power, and the Development of European Polities, by David Stasavage, per its publisher’s blurb, “the first comprehensive look at the joint development of representative assemblies and public borrowing in Europe during the medieval and early modern eras,” I get a sense of a functioning balance of rich elites (with a close eye and sharp pencil, monitoring governance) and the finance and functioning of somewhat smaller states, closer to the USA’s founding era. That earlier model and its observable risk management makes pretty good, compelling sense. (I’m assuming the POV is not that of a slave or Native or whatever.) One can argue whether the “alienation” (as in Marx’s terms), the distance between one’s lived community, and pools of elite-run capital, is greater now, or just the same thing, scaled up. But I see a kind of logic in the earlier elite model, that might have sort of gone fractal by now.
I am not sure that the current understanding of rational like-minded people supports the white supremacist billionaire capitalists. Yes, it certainly did 250 years ago, I’m not going to disagree with that.
But I think a lot of what’s happened since then has brought us to where MAGA believes they can be like the Founders. Unfortunately for them, I’m not sure you can put that genie back in the bottle. They won’t be able to restore slavery or remove womens suffrage without also returning to an economy of horses. Consider N Korea a current example of what that might look like.
And I suppose this is a bad time to mention the MG42 does 1200 rounds a minute and the flintlock does much less.
Maybe we should be able to get our own military equipment. Rush hour with Bradley’s would be fun.
However you want to roll it, there’s been some significant changes to humanity in the past 250 years and I think government, as a concept, should be making some adjustments in that time. Any attempt to roll society back to match 18th century government philosophy will always fail.
We have the ability to kill in the hundreds to millions in the time it would have taken to kill 10. The changes we have experience demographically is vastly more complex and open to subjective opinions, mostly based on self serving fear. What comes after capitalism?
Capitalism, in it’s current form, is failing along a will documented path from Adam Smith to Karl Marx. What comes after this? Government must evolve past a “capitalism is king” mentality because it doesn’t work for most.
I would say mandatory retirement at 70, so max 66 when taking office
I proposed this exact thing as a Constitutional amendment for my kid’s civics class paper – got a perfect score!
Graham may have been a bad influence on Trump. He appears to have been a true servant of the arms manufacturers. Of course I’m looking at it from a long way away.
Trump leaned on Graham when it was convenient and Graham was always there to lick Trump’s taint no matter what
“Some men better the World by leaving it.” Oscar Wilde
Then it looks like he didn’t tell any lies on “Meet the Press” this morning.
A great compendium of flip-flops, thanks!
Under this process, I’m sure another sycophant will be patched in there pretty quickly.
Then there is McConnell, waiting, or perhaps hovering on feathery wings, in some nearby alcove.
Maybe we will have a cavalcade of high-echelon deaths, like the USSR did in the 1980s. I think some “leaders” are doing their best to bring our nation to a similar fate, to what befell them: bunches of unforced errors.
Three star Mishelin award granted.😀
He just flew back from Ukraine….people that fly a lot know the dangers of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) during flight and post-flight clotting when flying..thankfully Lady Lindsey wasn’t aware.
https://www.cdc.gov/blood-clots/risk-factors/travel.html
It was Russian tea that killed Graham, according to the Internets
Would have been slapstick, and very Russian, if he’d fallen out of an airplane window.
He might have been “tea-bagging”….but not Russian tea
Our government is so into narrative control literally everything is bullshit. He might have gotten a case of lead poisoning, after all the drone factory he visited was bombed and his hotel was hit
Only three?
Are the stars results or process based in their being awarded? Asking for many friends.
Will Trump lean on McMaster to appoint Nimarotten?
If the Deep State had gotten Trump to pick her for VP in 2024 and they had won, she would have become president over a year ago.
McConnell next? Tonight? Monday?
Graham was a human POS and a disgrace to humanity…the fact that United States President Benjamin Nuttyahoo was one of the first to praise him tells you all you need to know.
They do tend to go in threes….
Don’t threaten me with a good time
After his next trip to his fellow Nazis in the Ukraine.