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What Lindsey Graham Wanted

July 12, 2026 · 6:23 pm ET · Leave a Comment

Mark Leibovich: “Senator Lindsey Graham, who died unexpectedly last night, was a pivotal citizen of the Washington conversation. He loved being in the mix, slapping bipartisan backs off camera, and then, when the lights came on, cracking wise, weighing in, and, yes, currying favor with a certain Audience of One.”

“What could be more fitting, then, for Graham—unable to be a participant on this fateful Sunday morning—to actually become the only thing better: the main topic of the news. He died as he lived.”

“Graham was a complex character—his private life, sudden death, public morality, the whole messy peach of him. Put that aside, though. Or I will (happily), because that will all be covered and uncovered and debated. Already has been.”

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Taegan Goddard

Taegan Goddard

Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire -- which for more than two decades has been one of the nation's most influential political news sites.

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