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In the Senate, there is a black veil covering the desk. At the top is a vase of bright white roses. That’s when Sen. Lindsey Graham, RS.C., used to live there.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, RS.D., pointed to that desk as he paid tribute to the late senator on Monday. Graham was Thune’s trusted advisor and friend. And with tears, he began to remember the lawmaker who spent 30 years in Washington, DC, making a mark on his state and his country.
“It’s hard to believe that Lindsey Graham is no longer here with us,” said Thune. “That we won’t meet him in a meeting today or share a joke with him at this afternoon’s vote. The halls of the Senate just feel empty without him. And I know I’m not alone in that feeling.”
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Senate Majority Leader John Thune, RS.D., remembered the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, RS.C., during his speech on the floor of the Senate on Monday evening. (Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
When Thune spoke about Graham, the late attorney’s staff were sitting in the Senate chamber as tears filled the room. And since Thune became the Senate GOP leader, you could often see Graham walking into his office just off the Senate floor.
He was there to talk down Republican rebels who threatened to sink President Donald Trump’s “big, good bill” and earlier this year stormed Thune’s office to announce his opposition to a deal brokered by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and the president to avoid a government shutdown.
But she was there, and Thune noted that “Lindsey was fearless in her commitment to the brands she supported.”
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“It didn’t mean anything to him that he would be surprised by a certain issue,” said Thune. “He was not depressed about politics if he believed that he was right in this goal.”
“Senator. Hero. Patriot. Statesman,” Thune continued. “Names will be written about Lindsey. But to me, above all, Mr. President, he was my friend.”
Shortly after Thune’s tribute to Graham, South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster officially tapped his sister, Darline Graham Nordone, to fill her seat for the remainder of her term. The move Thune, Trump and Sen. Tim Scott, RS.C. supported.
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President Donald Trump wants to see the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, RS.C., her sister, Darline Nordone Graham, being nominated for her vacant Senate seat to serve the remainder of her term. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
“I think this is what Lindsey would have wanted, and I plan to honor her in this way,” Nordone said at the ceremony. “Now Lindsey, I miss you more than I can even put into words. But I’m going to do this, I got you.”
Back in the Senate, Thune remembers Graham as “a hard-nosed and fierce advocate for South Carolina,” but also as a lawyer who was willing to cross paths to find a solution. Through it all, Thune said she will miss Graham’s friendship and humor.
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“It comforts me to know that finally, he just changed his address. And one day, Mr. President,” said Thune with tears in his eyes. “We will laugh together again.”
