From "What Happened to Lindsey Graham? He’s Become a Conservative ‘Rock Star’" (NYT). Part of what happened is that John McCain died. His friend Trey Gowdy is quoted saying that McCain was "the closest thing he ever had to a father." And McCain — as the Times puts it — "hated Mr. Trump."
[P]erhaps nothing has cemented Mr. Graham’s standing in Mr. Trump’s world as much as his performance at the divisive Supreme Court confirmation hearing for the future Justice Kavanaugh, who faced allegations of sexual assault from Christine Blasey Ford.His finger-wagging, lip-curling performance — “Boy, you all want power — God, I hope you never get it,” he snarled — was lampooned on “Saturday Night Live.” But Mr. Trump loved it.
“Wow! Remind me not to make you mad,” the president told Mr. Graham on a private call, the senator said...
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I'm loving Graham 2.0 so far. McCain was not a good influence on him.
Actually, it's The Coal Train, and, I'm the only one in the locomotive:
I'm just letting Lindsey wear the hat and blow the whistle.
Blogger Ron Snyder said...
"I'm loving Graham 2.0 so far. McCain was not a good influence on him."
McCain was a small man who gained power based on his military record. Trump called that military record into question and became McCain's sworn enemy. McCain's hatred of Trump consumed him. McCain then dragged Graham along for the ride.
I'm liking the new Graham as well. It amazes me what an influence McCain had on the Senate even though most everyone hated the man.
Was Graham saying he stepped up onto the Trump Train? Sloppy writing. I take him to mean he stepped up, spoke out, when his conscience demanded it.
Either way, Based Lindsay is awesome. He's so tickled about his popularity.
As more of the never-Trump or RINO class have personally seen where the Democrats are going and what they have become, many realize that their feelings of working to compromise and be nice have utterly failed. Lindsey Graham had a religious conversion. Certain LLRs and token Republican writers for the WaPo and NYT, not so much.
Woodward wrote that Graham was all over Trump at the white house from the start, while McCain was still alive. Prolly wanting to "help" him with immigration.
Bless his heart.
Graham hasn't changed. He's still Mr. Amnesty and warmongering Neo-Con.
He's also the biggest Camera Hog and Grandstander in the US Senate.
No POTUS action, or foreign or domestic news story is complete without a Sen Graham opinion.
When does he do any Senate work? When does he take a vacation?
He spent months during the Primary with 1% of the vote - traveling and talking and accomplishing nothing.
BTW, Graham is the doing the "Johnny McCain Shuffle"
He's up for re-election, so he has to play the conservative until November 2020.
I appreciate Graham's conduct during the Kavansugh hearing, but I will wait and see if this Graham 2.0 is here to stay.
Trump called out McCain's war hero act. That's enough to send McCain over the edge.
Tommy Duncan said... McCain was a small man who gained power based on his military record
AND his military record consisted of: Being shot down.
Trump seemed to be the first person to notice that
His military record was much more than that. And not in a bad way.
He was just a rotten guy who should have never been elected dog catcher. A despicable politician
rcocean said
BTW, Graham is the doing the "Johnny McCain Shuffle"
He's up for re-election, so he has to play the conservative until November 2020.
11/3/18, 7:33 AM
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Graham is one of best of gauging the political winds of his constituents.
Watch the CNN video from a couple of years ago linked by the NYT where that quote came from.
Graham couldn't have been more wrong about Trump's strategy and future Middle East policy success.
Good for him if he has since recognized it.
The Democrat Senators are lucky that Lindsey didn't cane them in Chambers as South Carolinian politicians are wont to do on occaision whenever the opposition lies.
Graham shows what was always indicated: he's an opportunistic hypocrite.
Gone is the senator
Strangely, he is not gone at all.
Lindsey Graham
Used to sing in Fleetwood Mac?
I like the change in Lindsey Graham too. As sudden as it seems, let's hope it isn't just a ploy and a tactic.
My joke to my husband is that Lindsey finally found his balls and decided he liked them.
Graham shows what was always indicated: he's an opportunistic hypocrite.
Which is completely unexpected in a politician.
John McCain was a complicated, flawed, courageous, rash character who behaved bravely, even nobly, after he became a POW. He could have gotten out; he stayed. He was completely unreliable as a political ally, routinely punching his friends in the nose to the applause of his enemies, in which he basked.
Lindsey Graham is another complicated, flawed, admirable person. He has been trying to find common ground with the Dems on some issues, which has been a traditional and honorable role in the Senate. I think what changed for Lindsey Graham is what has changed for a lot of us: the Dems have been driven crazy by Trump. People that Graham thought were his friends betrayed him. A key moment came in the Kavanaugh hearings when he said that he believed in comity,but he didn't believe in being played.
The Democrat Senators are lucky that Lindsey didn't cane them in Chambers as South Carolinian politicians are wont to do on occaision whenever the opposition lies.
Actually, Sumner was beaten for telling the truth.
The whole Kavanaugh smear campaign sure made things topsy-turvy. When Graham and Collins are the heroes you know things are a bit 'off.'
another benefit from McCain kicking it.
Back is the guy who served as impeachment manager against Clinton.
All the slurs hung on President Trump lack any evidence. A man that has been very high profile for 5? decades. And no evidence has ever surfaced for any of the bigotry he is accused of. None. Media created. Media spread. Lack of any corroborating evidence.
Trump likes the lemon Oreos, and anonymous sources in the White House reveal the true bigotry behind the preference.
That kind of crap. Where are the thousands of people he has worked with over 5 decades?
As far as Graham? Thanks Dems, you have successfully radicalized Sen. Lindsey Graham. An ally at one time. The Kavanaugh hearings, and later witch trials (lets dunk him and see if he floats) revealed to Graham the true nature of the Democrat Party. What Feinstein did to the Senate should make her a pariah to the rest of the Republican Senators. She shit on Grassely over the Russia investigation, going rouge and releasing information without his knowledge, breaking a professional courtesy they had agreed to. Not to release any information unless specifically agreed to by both. Then the Kavanaugh appointment, and Feinstein hides the Ford accusations until the eleventh hour, then leaks them to the press. She and the rest of the Dems should all resign in shame, but the truth is, all the Democrats support this kind of governance. Senator Graham has finally realized the Democrat organized crime family for what it really is.
I would personally like to thank the Democrats for bringing the Republican Party back together at such a perilous time.
A devout Republican is a Democrat mugged by reality
It seems Lindsey Graham is the latest one of these Democrats.
I expect the Democrats to win the House, I guess, but isn't it kind of strange that the Senate polls are going against that trend? How often does a party gain in on house and lose the other?
Whatever else comes from the election, the Kavanagh hearing at least allowed the GOP to pick up Lindsey Graham's Senate seat.
Cook - How? The left are a pack of liars and frauds and Graham realized it during the Kavanaugh confirmation circus.
The leftwing 11th hour CNN-Avenatti DiFi hit job on Kavanaugh woke Lindsey up - finally.
To not notice would have been criminal. Graham merely witnessed up front and personal what we already know about the crooked corrupt desperate liar left.
Lindsay likes his Senate career. In South Carolina he did the right thing by serving Trump as loyally as he once served McCain.
Tim, that is why I think the polls will turn out catastrophically wrong on Tuesday- one set of those polls have to be wrong, don't they? I expect the Republicans to either hold both Houses and increase their hold on the Senate, or they will lose both in a tsunami. No middling outcomes.
Mini-Me came into his own.
His friend Trey Gowdy is quoted saying that McCain was "the closest thing he ever had to a father."
Was Lindsey Graham an orphan? Because that's a rather dastardly thing to say, otherwise.
Graham, who wants to be popular, recognized that the Left will never give him what he wants. And he thinks a few popular positions will earn him an uncontested primary in 2020. He is not popular on the Right, in any case.
But he is tolerated by many now because of his stand against the Insane Left.
His Grahamnesty reputation should still be his undoing. Trump may co-opt Graham into the administration so that Nikki Haley becomes a US Senator.
Aunt Pitty Pat loves the limelight. She's a major drama queen.
You know, when someone dies, and then people near them suddenly start behaving very differently, it makes me consider the possibility that those people have just had a threat of blackmail lifted from them.
Regarding Graham's family, his parents died within 15 months of each other when he was about y 20 and starting college. He was left with responsibility for his 13 year old sister. He was still trying to finish school, being the first person in his family ever to have gone to college. He went on to law school. He went immediately into the Air Force JAG Corps thereafter. I think he legally adopted his sister so she could get on his medical insurance.
I believe Graham's bond with McCain came out of the sense of family that Graham found in the Air Force.
his parents died within 15 months of each other when he was about y 20 and starting college. He was left with responsibility for his 13 year old sister.
Good Lord! Yes, I can see someone like that looking to strength, or the appearance of strength.
Amadeus 48,
Interesting background on Graham. And I agree with your take on McCain and Graham. It's weird to me that people can have such absolute views on either of them, but McCain in particular. I really, really disliked some of the things he did, but how can anyone deny that the man had a great deal of courage and, yes, nobility too?
I live in SC and Lindsey is the lesser of my two senators (the excellent Tim Scott is the other). I think you can track Lindsey's change in attitude to when Trump blew up my congresman Mark Sanford (who was then leading by 3-4 percentage points) with a series of tweets right before the primary--whch Sanford promptly lost.
I think Graham realized that he needed to get with the Trump program if he wanted to survive his next primary.
I certainly agree that John McCain was a sub-optimal conservative. On the other hand, McCain was offered the opportunity to waltz out of the Hanoi Hilton and instead signed on for a few more years of barbarous treatment, because he needed to keep faith with his fellow POWs. Can anyone in their wildest dreams imagine Kerry or Obama or Clinton declining a ticket back to the US? May he rest in peace.
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