“I can’t die now. I still need to do the Russia sanctions, get Iran sorted out and do Israeli-Saudi normalization.”
Those were among the final remarks made by US Senator Lindsey Graham after he complained of feeling unwell on Saturday evening. Hours later, the 71-year-old Republican lawmaker died after suffering a tear in his aorta.
According to journalist Barak Ravid’s report, Graham began feeling unwell shortly after a phone call with US President Donald Trump on Saturday. A source close to the senator said he was urged to seek immediate medical attention, but Graham chose to put it off until the next morning.
“When the person urged him to seek medical attention immediately, Graham said he would do so Sunday morning after his scheduled appearance on NBC’s ‘Meet the Press,'” the report said.
Even as concerns were raised about his condition, Graham responded with a joke that reflected the foreign policy issues he had been working on in his final days.
“I can’t die now. I still need to do the Russia sanctions, get Iran sorted out and do Israeli-Saudi normalization,” the Trump ally had said, according to the source.
He died several hours later.
Final Hours Followed Ukraine Trip, Sanctions Push
Graham’s final conversations reportedly focused on his recent visit to Ukraine and a bipartisan sanctions package aimed at increasing pressure on Russia.
The South Carolina senator had spoken with Trump on Saturday evening about the legislation, which he was working to advance in Congress alongside Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal.
Just a day earlier, Graham announced in Kyiv that he had secured White House backing for the sanctions bill.
Graham had said, “We’ve reached an agreement with the White House on a version of the Russian sanctions bill that they will support. It means it’s going to become law. So, when I get back to Washington, I’m going to go with Senator Blumenthal to the Republican and Democratic leaders to see if we can find time to move this Russian sanctions package that would give tools to President Trump to help end this war.
“There are some things we can do on the technology front to build on the lethality of Ukraine to protect itself from ballistic missile attack. If we did that, combined with creating tools to punish those countries that prop up Putin and make money off this war, then I think we’ve got the best chance since I’ve been coming here in the last five years to get Putin to the peace table,” he added
Graham’s Medical Report
Graham’s office announced on Sunday that the senator had died on Saturday evening following what was initially described as a “brief and sudden illness.”
Later, preliminary findings from a medical examiner revealed that Graham had suffered a tear in the inner wall of his aorta, known as an aortic dissection.
The finding stated that the condition was linked to hardening of the arteries.
An official cause of death will be released after toxicological and microscopic testing is completed.
Conspiracy Theories
The senator’s sudden death quickly sparked speculation across social media, with some users falsely claiming that he had been assassinated.
Among the claims were allegations that Russia, Iran, Ukraine or Israel might have been involved in his death.
Other posts questioned whether Graham could have died in Washington given his travel schedule, while some cited the FBI’s assistance to local authorities as supposed evidence that Graham’s death was suspicious.
(With inputs from agencies)
