WASHINGTON--Republican U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham, a one-time vocal critic of Donald Trump who went on to become one of the president's staunchest allies, died late on Saturday from a heart ailment caused by hardening of the arteries, his office said on Sunday. He was 71.
In an interview with Reuters, Trump said he spoke to Graham "minutes" before the South Carolina Republican was taken ill and ruled out any foul play. "There are these rumors. But, no, I believe he had a very short-term illness. He had a heart attack," Trump said. "He was a friend of mine, a great friend of mine, and it's very devastating losing him."
A preliminary finding from the medical examiner of the District of Columbia said the cause of death was "aortic dissection," Graham's office said in an email. Aortic dissection is a tear in the main artery that carries blood from the heart. The finding showed it was due to arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease.
Trump has ordered U.S. flags to be lowered in Graham's honour.
The contest to succeed Graham in reliably Republican South Carolina will not impact the broader fight for control of the Senate between Republicans and Democrats in the November midterm elections. But his death robs Trump of a dependable Senate vote as the president seeks to push his agenda in Congress. With the ongoing absence of another Republican lawmaker, Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, it effectively narrows the party's Senate majority to a minimal 51 votes until a replacement can be sworn in.
Senate Republicans were already down one vote because of the absence of McConnell, who remains hospitalized recovering from what he described as injuries from a fall at home, as well as mild pneumonia.
Graham died less than two days before the Senate is scheduled to return on Monday from its July 4 break for a compressed work period in which Republicans hope to advance key legislation on defense and national security matters and to confirm Trump nominees including the president's former lawyer, Todd Blanche, as U.S. attorney general.
Under South Carolina law, the state's Republican Governor Henry McMaster can immediately appoint a temporary replacement to fill the seat for the remainder of Graham's term, which ends in early January.
Republicans hoping to serve in Graham's place for the next full six-year Senate term will compete in a special party primary election on August 11, with a runoff set for August 25 if no candidate wins a majority, according to state law. The winner will face Democrat Annie Andrews in the November general election.
Graham, a defense hawk, was a prominent supporter of Israel and Ukraine and an opponent of Iran. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he was "deeply saddened" by the news, calling Graham "a true defender of freedom and the values that make our world safer."
On Friday, Graham met Zelenskiy in Kyiv, and the Ukrainian leader said the two discussed Ukraine's air defense needs and a Russia sanctions bill.
U.S. Representative Michael McCaul, a Texas Republican and former chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said Graham's death could strengthen momentum to pass a bill that would increase U.S. sanctions on Russia — a Graham-championed initiative that won the White House's endorsement last week. "The best way we can honor Lindsey is to pass his bill," McCaul told Reuters.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement that Israel had lost one of its greatest supporters. "I have lost a beloved friend," Netanyahu added. Netanyahu expects to attend Graham's funeral, a senior Israeli official said.
