South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham, a staunch ally of President Donald Trump and a longtime supporter of US military operations around the world, died suddenly late Saturday night. His death leaves countries such as Ukraine and Israel without one of their most dedicated backers in Congress and without a voice that had Trump’s ear.
Only hours earlier, in a phone call with Trump, Graham had said he could not die yet because he still had a great deal of work left to do.
An Axios report said that in the final weeks of his life Graham had been working actively on an ambitious diplomatic effort to normalise relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel. According to the report, in his last phone call with Trump, Graham briefed the president on his recent visit to Ukraine, during which he toured a military drone-production facility and met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. He also discussed a plan to pass a bill in the Senate imposing new sanctions on Russia.
Trump later told reporters that Graham had sounded somewhat tired on the call but was otherwise normal. The two also discussed advancing the SAVE Act, a measure on voter-identity verification, in Congress.
In a separate call with a close associate, Graham likewise brushed aside concerns about his health, saying he would see a doctor after appearing on Sunday’s scheduled “Meet the Press” broadcast.
According to Axios, in his final phone call Graham said he could not die yet, that he still had to finish the Russia sanctions effort, resolve the Iran issue and complete the work of normalising Israel-Saudi relations.
After Graham’s death, Trump ordered the national flag flown at half-staff across the country until the following Saturday. South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster appointed Graham’s sister, Darline Graham Nordone, to serve as senator for the remainder of his term.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report