<\/p>\n
WASHINGTON (AP) – Sen. Lindsey Graham, one of President Donald Trump’s closest allies in Congress who traveled the globe to advocate for a more aggressive U.S. foreign policy, has died after a \u201cbrief and sudden illness,\u201d his office said. He was 71.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The statement posted on social media late Saturday did not provide any additional details about the South Carolina Republican, a former Air Force lawyer, and said his family \u201cappreciates prayers at this time and asks for privacy during this incredibly difficult period.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSenator Lindsey Graham, one of the greatest people and Senators I have ever known, is dead!\u201d Trump posted on social media early Sunday. \u201cHe was always working, and was a true American Patriot. Lindsey will be greatly missed!!! DETAILS AND ARRANGEMENTS TO FOLLOW. So sad!\u201d<\/p>\n
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said \u201cmy heart is heavy this morning to learn the passing of my friend and colleague.”<\/p>\n
Thune said Graham was “a strong advocate for the United States and a strong ally to freedom-loving countries across the globe. He believed in the might of America to achieve good in the world and dedicated his life to advancing that cause.\u201d<\/p>\n
Graham was elected to the Senate in 2002 after serving in the House. He long promoted a policy of robust U.S. military interventionism and strong national defense that in later years would put him at odds with the growing isolationist wing of the Republican Party.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu mourned Graham\u2019s death, calling him \u201ca great friend of Israel\u201d and \u201ca cherished friend of mine.\u201d<\/p>\n
Netanyahu said Graham understood that the security of Israel and the United States was inseparable and devoted his life to defending America, strengthening the U.S.-Israel alliance and standing up for the free world.<\/p>\n
\u201cIsrael has lost one of its greatest friends. America has lost a great patriot. I have lost a beloved friend,\u201d Netanyahu said.<\/p>\n
Republicans hold a narrow 53-47 majority in the Senate. Under South Carolina law, Gov. Henry McMaster, a Republican, will appoint a temporary replacement for Graham, and that person will serve until January.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
WASHINGTON (AP) – Sen. Lindsey Graham, one of President Donald Trump’s closest allies in Congress who traveled the globe to advocate for a more aggressive U.S. foreign policy, has died after a \u201cbrief and sudden illness,\u201d his office said. He was 71.\u00a0 The statement posted on social media late Saturday did not provide any additional<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":30375,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[4608,1337,1174,779,10099,3533,3138,174],"class_list":["post-30374","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-jesus","tag-ally","tag-close","tag-dies","tag-graham","tag-lindsey","tag-sen","tag-suddenly","tag-trump"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30374","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=30374"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30374\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/30375"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=30374"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=30374"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biblelon.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=30374"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}