Anthony Zurcher: From Trump critic to ally, Lindsey Graham was a political survivor of the Maga era

Image source, AP By Anthony Zurcher North America correspondent Published 2 hours ago Lindsey Graham, who has died aged 71, was a political survivor. His career as a Republican senator served as a telling barometer for the dramatically changing climate in his political party - and America - in the Donald Trump era. While there were certain issues central to Graham's political identity – including a hawkish foreign policy that focused on containing Russian global ambitions, support for Israel and regime change in Iran – his 23-year career in the Senate was marked by a willingness to adapt to the gale-force change of political winds that accompanied Trump's rise to power. Shortly after being elected to represent South Carolina in the Senate in 2002, Graham became a close ally of Senator John McCain, the Arizona Republican who, while a staunch conservative, developed a national reputation for political independence. When Graham ran for president in 2015, the idea of cooling partisan tensions and working with political opponents was one of his central messages. "If I get to be president, we're going to open up a bar in the White House," Graham said. "We're going to get liquored up and solve problems." He bristled when Trump criticised war-hero McCain for being a prisoner of war, with the New York real estate mogul telling a campaign event: "He's a war hero because he was captured. I like people that weren't captured." Graham called Trump a "jackass" who shouldn't be president. Trump then read out Graham's phone number at a rally, which inundated the senator with angry calls and messages. In response, Graham destroyed a collection of mobile phones in a stunt video. US senator and close Trump ally Lindsey Graham dies after 'brief and sudden illness' Published 4 hours ago A few months later, as his presidential campaign fizzled, Graham called Trump a "race-baiting, xenophobic, religious bigot". That criticism would reach a crescendo in his famous Twitter post in May 2016 that if the Republican Party chose Trump as its nominee it "will get destroyed ... and we will deserve it". Graham – like many national Republicans – stayed wary of Trump during his 2016 general election race against Hillary Clinton. He publicly announced he would not vote for either, instead opting for independent candidate Evan McMullin. Once Trump secured victory, however, Graham changed his attitude. As Trump consolidated his control over the Republican Party during his first presidential term, Graham became a close ally and, by all accounts, a friend. The two men regularly golfed together, and the senator, who was always a fixture on cable news television, ardently defended the president and his policies. When Trump picked Brett Kavanaugh to be his second Supreme Court appointment, Graham angrily condemned allegations of sexual assault made against the nominee, who denied wrongdoing. Through his intervention, Graham helped to ensure he was confirmed – albeit by the narrow