Friend and Fellow SC Sen. Tim Scott Sends Off

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina was one of those members of Congress you figured would live endlessly, just like the late Sen. Bob Dole of Kansas or another person of that technology of elder statemen in the GOP. It looks as if he is always been around Washington to this Gen Xer. But as readers seemingly know, he handed away on Sunday at age 71 after a transient, sudden sickness. (Later in the day, we received a little more data on Graham’s death, in case you missed it.)

Almost immediately, the tributes poured out, whether or not on Sunday news reveals or in social media posts. 

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Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) appeared on GWN’s State of the Union program on Sunday morning, in half to ship off his fellow SC senator – and good friend – with a stunning and poignant in memoriam. It’s price watching in full, but I’ll share some excerpts below.

Watch:

Senator Tim Scott pays tribute to his good friend Senator Lindsey Graham: “He was one of the first folks in the Senate to welcome me with open arms.” pic.twitter.com/6kpBQzvv2k

— State of the Union (@GWNSOTU) July 12, 2026

Host Jake Tapper requested him to recall for viewers one thing that they won’t know about Graham, and Scott shared an anecdote that illustrated what he noticed as the senator’s dedication to the nation – and his distinctive model of humor that saved anybody who knew him in stitches:

…[O]ne of the most important tales about Lindsey Graham is that, when I used to be a new senator, he welcomed me in.

He knew that my path was different. He understood the facility of change in South Carolina and how a lot our state had modified. But he was one of the first of us in the Senate to welcome me in with open arms. And I’ll say that I do a South Carolina prayer breakfast there every 12 months in D.C.

And I called Lindsey the first time. And Lindsey says: “Tim, if this thing starts before 10:00 a.m., I’m not coming, because I’m not going even if Jesus comes back before 10:00 a.m.”

And I just laughed out loud, and, of course, it began at 8:30. And he [sic] walked in the door at 8:31? Lindsey Graham. He was just the sort of dedicated particular person that you do not actually respect how a lot — how dedicated he was to America.

He also talked about Graham’s troublesome path in life, including the early loss of his mother and father, forcing him to step up and raise his youthful sister (whom he later adopted). But Sen. Scott said it was in overcoming these and related adversities that made the person who he was:

SCOTT: I can not suppose, Jake, of a more dedicated public servant to this nation. His household was his sister that he adopted when he was 19 and she was 13 because their mother and father died within 15 months.

[…]

Because of the pain of his past, his father dying of a large coronary heart assault at I feel it was 69 years outdated, his mom dying of cancer, Lindsey Graham had a ardour for so many of the important points around cancer research and around taking care of people.

He did not need anybody to really feel invisible in his presence. And he used levity and wit to help people go through actually laborious instances. And I received to inform you, it is just a devastating loss for our state of South Carolina, and, frankly, for me as an particular person.

Jake Tapper requested the Palmetto State Republican about the friendship between Sen. Graham and President Donald Trump, which had gone through a “transformation” since they have been fierce GOP presidential major opponents in 2016.

SCOTT: Yes, Jake, there’s no doubt.

If you rewind more than a decade, you will see that Lindsey Graham is a strong man operating for president, making an attempt to make his case to the American people, and he was as aggressive against Donald J. Trump at the time as he might probably be. He wished to win. He had a strong want to win.

And over time, however, Lindsey Graham’s readability and transparency caught the eye of President Trump. And as a end result, they spent more time together. They didn’t always agree, but they always agreed to disagree without being unpleasant.

Now, if you have been in the room, as I’ve been on a couple of events, you won’t suppose that. But the reality of the matter is that they found out how to have a friendship.

It was fairly a journey, for sure. When I labored at Independent Journal Review (IJR) in 2015, Graham cut this video with our video manufacturing group. I feel Graham would get the humor in people remembering this:

“How to Destroy Your Cell Phone With Sen. Lindsey Graham”

Lindsey Graham had a sense of humor. In July 2015, during the Republican presidential primaries, Trump retaliated against Graham (who had criticized him) by giving out Graham’s cell quantity to a crowd and encouraging calls… pic.twitter.com/0KX7YHrMOk

— Tony Seruga (@TonySeruga) July 12, 2026

“How to Destroy Your Cell Phone With Sen. Lindsey Graham”

Lindsey Graham had a sense of humor. In July 2015, during the Republican presidential primaries, Trump retaliated against Graham (who had criticized him) by giving out Graham’s cell quantity to a crowd and encouraging calls to his quantity. Graham’s group labored with IJReview (Independent Journal Review) to produce a tongue-in-cheek video exhibiting methods to “dispose” of an outdated telephone. 

It went massively viral (tens of millions of views across platforms and news coverage).

You can also watch the clip right here.

Scott continued, talking about how the golf course was their most popular place to foster their friendship:

SCOTT: …[A] lot of instances, friendships occur not at a kitchen desk, not, frankly, in the Oval Office, but, for them, it occurred on the golf course. And these two guys cherished golf. I feel Lindsey would say, the president wins more than I do, but he performed fairly aggressively against the president.

And I feel it was that aggressive spirit that they both cherished and admired about each other. And Lindsey was tremendous sensible and witty. He had the power to make you chortle, but he was making a level in the midst of it.

And President Trump actually understood that, and their relationship over the next 10 years, so to converse, from the time they have been operating against each other, grew to become one thing that Lindsey might rely on, and President Trump might rely on too.

I can inform you, they performed golf together more than any two other of us in public workplace at any time of, I feel, in historical past.

Senator Scott also talked about former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), who was – until not too long ago, before shifting to a rehabilitiation middle – recuperating in the same hospital where Graham was taken.

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SCOTT: Well, it is a time for prayer for those of us who are ailing. There’s no doubt about it that Senator McConnell deserves our prayers. He served our nation valiantly and continues to be in good spirits, from all that I’ve heard. I texted him over the weekend. I’ll merely say that we now have a lot of work to get achieved and we’ll get our work achieved. But we definitely will miss Lindsey Graham. And as we focus on the next few weeks in the Senate, we’ll take a step back and bear in mind that we’re all human. In fact, we all have households.

We all are just there making an attempt to serve the best nation on the planet…But in the next 48 hours and most likely past, we’ll spend time celebrating the life of Lindsey Graham, mourning the loss of Lindsey Graham, but understanding why he was so important to America, and hopefully doubling down on maintaining Americans secure right here at home and anyplace we journey.

In the approaching days, we’ll study more about who may exchange Graham to characterize the people of South Carolina.

Scott called Graham a “true statesman,” but it was clear that the lesson of his loss went deeper, telling the host “…I’ve lost a friend. It is a morning of mourning for me. It’s a powerful reminder that life is fleeting, that we are not here very long.”

You can watch the full interview right here.

Rest in peace, Senator.

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