Before I went to bed, I learned of South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham's sudden passing.
At that moment, I was too tired to write anything. One ought to be as clear minded as possible before expressing oneself.
Now that I have had some sleep and time to reflect, here are a few thoughts.
For starters, I do not care for the glee with which Graham's demise was celebrated on Bluesky.
To behave in such a manner makes one no better than the MAGA acolytes they claim to decry.
Because of this I appreciated the sober commentary provided by sportswriter Jeff Pearlman on his Facebook page.
Like Pearlman, I have profoundly disagreed with many of the things he has said and done in the service of Donald Trump over the past decade or so.
Among other things, I took issue with Graham disputing the results of the 2020 election up to and including his improper call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger. He exhibited similar behavior in the 2022 mid-terms on the Nevada Senate election between Democratic incumbent Catherine Cortez-Masto against Republican challenger Adam Laxalt. Graham claimed that any result which didn't see Laxalt elected to the Senate was "a lie".
I took issue with Graham when he called for the impeachment of President Biden over the U.S. withdrawal in Afghanistan. Policy disagreement isn't grounds for impeachment and Graham, an attorney, knew that full well.
I did not care for Graham's treatment of Ketanji Brown Jackson when President Biden nominated her to the Supreme Court in 2022. Graham claimed, "The radical left has won President Biden over yet again." Mind you, Graham was perfectly happy to confirm her to the D.C. Circuit Court less than a year earlier.
Nor did I care when Graham called any prosecution of Doanld Trump over the handling of classified documents would result in riots. As I argued at the time, Graham's statement was far more damning of MAGA than it was of the DoJ under President Biden.
After Trump returned to the White House, I did not care for Graham's role in the Venezuelan coup. Oh, I don't lose a minute's sleep over Nicolas Maduro. However, Maria Corina Machado is the rightful President of Venezuela. But the will of the Venezuelan people counts for nothing.
After Trump and Vance publicly berated Ukrainian President Zelensky at the White House, Graham publicly mused if Zelensky was "redeemable" and suggested that Ukraine "send us somebody else we can deal with." It is worth noting that Graham died only hours after meeting with Zelensky who stated, "America and the world have lost a resolute leader." Zelensky treated Graham with far more grace than Graham extended to him.
All of the above words and deeds of Graham to which I object were done in the service of Donald Trump, not in the interests of the United States.
A decade ago, Graham (who had sought the White House himself) declared, "If we nominate Trump, we will get destroyed.......and we will deserve it."
And then he kissed Donald Trump's feet.
After the events of January 6th, Graham declared, "All I can say is 'count me out.' Enough is enough."
And then he came back for more.
Yet it must be remembered that Lindsey Graham was a politician. And what do nearly all politicians covet more than anything else?
Power!!!
Graham is not the first politician to go down this road, and he will not be the last.
For Graham, this meant becoming Trump's humble servant. Even if it meant having to suck it up when Trump denigrated his close friend John McCain. Like many other Republicans, Graham made excuses for Trump's behavior claiming they simply hated Trump. Well, I think Trump questioning McCain's service to this country is fairly contemptible and, at one time, so did Lindsey Graham.
Of course, Graham's words and deeds in the service of Trump must be remembered because Trump is transitioning this country from democracy to authoritarianism. They will be a significant part of his legacy.
Yet I don't see how delighting in Graham's death accomplishes anything. Someone else, presumably his successor in the Senate, will gladly worship at the altar of Trump and there's a good chance that such an individual will have far less scruples than Graham. R.I.P.
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