Trump spoke to Lindsey Graham shortly before death, says he didn't seem ill

WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump said he spoke to Lindsey Graham by phone around 7 p.m. ET on Saturday, July 11, recounting that the U.S. senator from South Carolina seemed tired but fine otherwise, hours before Graham was announced dead overnight by his Senate office.

Graham, 71, had just visited Ukraine, where he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday, July 10, before making the long flight back to Washington.

"He said, 'I feel good, but I'm tired,'" Trump said in a phone interview on NBC's "Meet the Press," the Sunday morning political program that Graham was scheduled to appear on. "He was fine. I knew him well. He would let you know if he wasn't feeling well. He he had days when he didn't feel so well, and he'd let you know about it."

Graham's stunning death sent shockwaves through the nation's capital and his home state of South Carolina, where Graham spend decades in politics, first as state lawmaker and a U.S. congressman before joining the U.S. Senate in 2003.

"He's a tough one to lose," Trump said. "He was great. He was unique in every way, actually."

'He sounded great,' Trump says of Graham in phone call

In their phone call, Trump said Graham told him, "'We're all set on the SAVE America Act,'" referring to long-stalled legislation Trump has pushed to overhaul federal elections. "He was pushing the SAVE America Act like crazy."

"He said he just landed from Ukraine. I said, 'That's a long trip to make,'" Trump said of their conversation. "He sounded a little bit tired, but perfect, but a little bit tired. He had a right to be. I mean, he was a worker. He was really a worker. But he sounded great."

Trump said he told Graham that he will see him soon. "We thought we might even meet today. And then that was it," the president said. "It could have been his last call. I don't know exactly."

Emergency responders were dispatched to the Capitol Hill home of Graham around 8:30 p.m. ET following a report of someone suffering chest pains, according to audio on the Broadcastify website, which archives public safety radio feeds.

Graham's office said the senator died from a "brief and sudden illness" but did not specify the nature of the illness or say whether the senator experienced cardiac issues.

Trump said he received a message at around 1 a.m. ET that Graham had passed away.

Trump recalls Kavanaugh confirmation as one of Graham's finest moments

Graham was one of Trump's most trusted allies in the Senate, but they didn't always have a friendly relationship. When Graham ran for president in the 2016 Republican primary, he referred to Trump as a "con man," "crazy," a kook" and "unfit for office." Like many Republicans critical of Trump that year, he quickly became a Trump convert after he became the party's nominee.

As chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Graham helped secure the confirmation of Trump's most recent Supreme Court appointment, Justice Amy Coney Barrett. Trump also recalled Graham's fierce defense of Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who overcame accusations of sexual assault from his youth to be confirmed to the court.

"His moment on Brett Kavanaugh was one of the classics, I think, in the history of the Senate, when he defended Brett Kavanaugh so brilliantly," Trump said. "And Brett might not have made it except for that. They were treating him very unfriendly."

Trump said Graham was "like a member of the family," knew how to work with members of both political parties and loved serving in the U.S. Senate and being a politician.

"He was such an advocate. If he wanted to get something, he had a unique ability to deal with Democrats and Republicans," Trump said. "If had a problem – a real problem – I wouldn't often ask. But if I had a problem with a Democrat, he could work it out. He was a great politician, actually."

Trump knows who he wants to replace Graham in Senate

Under South Carolina law, Gov. Henry McMaster, a Trump ally, is tasked with appointing an interim senator to replace Graham before a special election will be held in August to choose the next U.S. senator.

Trump said he has an individual in mind as his preference to replace Graham in the Senate but declined to reveal the person. "I have somebody that I think would be great, but I don't want to say it now because it's just too soon with Lindsey," Trump said. "I don't even want to talk about anybody, but I do have somebody who I think is really good."

Trump predicted Graham was on track to easily win his reelection bid in November, adding that he's not sure what Graham would have done with himself had he not win.

"I said, 'The reason I'm endorsing you is because I got to make sure you win. Because if you didn't win, I don't think you could handle life,'" Trump said. "You know, there are some guys who can lose and go into something else I can't imagine him doing anything else."

"I said, 'If you weren't a U.S. senator, I don't know if he could live very long,' and look what happens," the president said. "He was going to have a big victory. And the people love him. Everybody loved him."

Trump then corrected himself.

"Well, no, he had some enemies. He was a tough cookie. Don't misunderstand. If he thought he was right and he had people against him, he could be very tough, actually," the president said.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump spoke to Lindsey Graham shortly before death, says he didn't seem ill

Reporting by Joey Garrison, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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This story was originally published July 12, 2026 at 12:36 PM.