Topline<\/p>\n
President Donald Trump ordered flags to half mast after the death of Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a longtime Republican stalwart in the Senate who died on Saturday night following what his office called<\/a> a \u201cbrief and sudden illness.\u201d<\/p>\n The South Carolina senator\u2019s office said the 71-year-old died after a \u201cbrief and sudden illness.\u201d<\/p>\n CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty ImagesKey Facts<\/p>\n President Donald Trump called Graham<\/a> \u201cone of the greatest people and Senators I have ever known,\u201d as well as a \u201ca true American Patriot\u201d\u2014years after Graham emerged as a close ally following staunch opposition to Trump during his first primary campaign in 2015 and 2016.<\/p>\n Graham was a mainstay on news programs and a major face of the Republican Party, and was scheduled<\/a> for his 64th appearance on \u201cMeet the Press\u201d on Sunday morning.<\/p>\n Trump, who instead spoke to \u201cMeet the Press,\u201d<\/a> said he spoke with Graham before his death, after the senator returned from a trip to Ukraine: \u201che sounded great actually, but he actually said he was tired.\u201d<\/p>\n Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., called Graham<\/a> a \u201ctrusted adviser and colleague to me and many others, and numerous presidents and heads of state have relied on his counsel,\u201d praising him for his past leadership and offering \u201cheartfelt condolences.\u201d<\/p>\n Graham was famous for his hawkish views on foreign policy, backing military support for U.S. allies like Ukraine and Israel, and both Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy<\/a> and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu<\/a> wrote long tributes to what the Ukrainian leader called \u201ca true defender of freedom and the values that make our world safer.\u201d<\/p>\n Later on Sunday, former President Joe Biden, another longtime veteran of the Senate, noted<\/a> he and Graham \u201cdisagreed often, and sometimes loudly\u201d but praised him for belief in the \u201cprofound importance of public service\u201d and his love for the Senate as an institution.<\/p>\n Kash Patel Says FBI \u2018Assisting\u2019 After Death<\/p>\n In one of the stranger tributes that came in on Sunday, FBI Director Kash Patel said his agency was \u201cassisting local authorities and has made every necessary resource available.\u201d Law enforcement has not indicated any evidence of foul play in the senator\u2019s death, and unnamed law enforcement sources later told CNN<\/a> that police were only conducting a normal review that typically happens after a death is reported.<\/p>\n Process to Replace Graham Has Already Begun<\/p>\n South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster said his family was “devastated” and called Graham \u201cirreplaceable\u201d in a statement<\/a> Sunday. South Carolina state law allows McMaster to immediately appoint a replacement for the rest of Graham\u2019s term in office. Graham\u2019s term is up in January, and he was running for reelection in November. Speaking to \u201cMeet the Press\u201d on Sunday, Trump said he already had a candidate in mind to fill the South Carolina seat. \u201cIt\u2019s too soon with Lindsey,\u201d the president said. \u201cI don\u2019t want to even talk about anybody. But I do have somebody that I think is really good.\u201d Trump then heaped praise on McMaster, whom he said is \u201ca really good governor, a really good guy,\u201d adding, \u201che\u2019s going to do the right thing, I think.\u201d Other South Carolina Republicans also offered praise for Graham. Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., who announced her departure from Congress earlier this year in a failed bid to run for governor, wrote<\/a> \u201cwhatever you thought of his politics, he carried a weight most people never have to carry.\u201d However, Mace also faced blowback after posting a clip from \u201cThe Godfather: Part III,\u201d featuring Al Pacino as Michael Corleone saying the famous line: \u201cjust when I thought I was out, they pull me back in.\u201d Mace told<\/a> Fox News on Sunday she will \u201ctake a look\u201d at running to fill Graham\u2019s seat.<\/p>\n BILLIONAIRE WEIGHS IN ON GRAHAM\u2019S DEATH<\/p>\n Outspoken billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman<\/a> on Sunday reposted a video of Graham speaking in Ukraine the previous day, noting: \u201cThis doesn\u2019t look like a guy who would die hours later,\u201d without directly suggesting he believed conspiracy theories of foul play largely circulating on political fringe accounts. <\/p>\n What Was Graham\u2019s Cause of Death?<\/p>\n Graham\u2019s office only said the senator died from a \u201cbrief and sudden illness,\u201d offering no further cause of death. His family asked for \u201cprivacy during this incredibly difficult time,\u201d according to Graham\u2019s office. EMS responded to a call of cardiac arrest at Graham\u2019s home in Washington, D.C., on Saturday night, according to brief audio obtained by CNN<\/a> and other outlets. Speaking to \u201cMeet the Press\u201d on Sunday morning, Trump speculated this must have happened shortly after his call with the senator. \u201cIt must have been right after that, because I understand the police or whoever it is came there at about 7:30-8:00 in the evening\u2026 so somebody notified them.\u201d Trump seemed surprised about Graham\u2019s death, noting \u201che was fine. I knew him well. He would let you know if he wasn\u2019t feeling well.\u201d<\/p>\n Trump Spoke To Graham Before His Death<\/p>\n Trump said Graham sounded \u201ca little bit tired, but he had a right to be\u201d after returning from his trip to Ukraine. The president said Graham wanted to keep working to pass the Save America Act, the controversial voter ID bill<\/a> Trump is trying to push through the legislature. \u201cHe was like a member of the family to me, it\u2019s very tough,\u201d Trump said.<\/p>\n