Lindsey Graham spent decades as a serious foreign policy voice in the Republican party. Then Donald Trump arrived on the scene, and the South Carolina senator's political arc became a study in the party's wholesale transformation.
In the 2016 primary, Graham didn't mince words. He called Trump "a race-baiting, xenophobic, religious bigot" who didn't represent the GOP. He said Trump was "just generally a loser as a person and a candidate" and warned that nominating him would mean defeat "and we will deserve it." Graham refused to vote for Trump in the general election, backing independent Evan McMullin instead.
But once Trump beat Hillary Clinton, something shifted. Graham found his way into Trump's orbit. The turning point was swift. "I went from, 'OK, he's president' to 'How can I get to be in his orbit?' to 'How can I have a say in what's going to happen today, tomorrow and next week?'" Graham later explained. He and Trump played golf together. Graham marveled that a president was calling him so often, calling it both flattering and weird.
The McCain factor tested this new alliance. Trump had attacked John McCain, Graham's close friend and Arizona Senate colleague, before and after McCain's death. Graham was furious at first, saying Trump's behavior bothered him greatly and "pisses me off to no end." Yet even that didn't sever the relationship. Graham moved past it, deciding he wouldn't "live my life going forward around John McCain."
January 6 and Trump's efforts to overturn the election caused another public break. Graham said "enough is enough" and that he was counting himself out. That estrangement lasted months at most. By May 2021, Graham was back on message, declaring that America "can't grow" without Trump and that the two had "a hell of a journey." They were golfing again.
By 2026, Graham's transformation was complete. At a South Carolina event, he told Trump: "Mr President, you're not far behind God."
His positions shifted along with the relationship. On Iran, Graham had long been hawkish. But his rhetoric hardened as Trump's administration took a more aggressive stance. "If Iran contests control of the Strait of Hormuz by the United States, we will obliterate them," Graham said in June 2026, promising Trump would take military action if diplomacy failed.
Graham's evolution on Saudi Arabia followed a similar pattern. In October 2018, after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Turkey, Graham called the crown prince "a wrecking ball" and said the MBS figure was "toxic" and could never be a world leader. By February 2026, his assessment had reversed. He praised the crown prince's vision as "great for South Carolina" and "great for the United States and the civilized world."
On domestic matters, Graham remained consistent in his fierce partisanship. During Brett Kavanaugh's Supreme Court confirmation fight, he mounted an aggressive defense of the nominee, attacking Democrats for what he called "the most unethical sham since I've been in politics." He praised the justices he had voted for and attacked those he opposed, maintaining his hard line against Biden's judicial picks.
Graham's friendship with Joe Biden, once genuine, became subordinate to his role as Trump ally. He had once called Biden "the nicest person I've ever met in politics, as good a man as God ever created." When the moment came to investigate Biden's son Hunter, Graham didn't hesitate. "My friendship with Joe Biden, if it can't withstand me doing my job, then it's not the friendship I thought we had," he said.
Author James Rodriguez: "Graham's career shows how completely Trump reshaped the Republican party, turning even skeptical establishment figures into loyal foot soldiers."
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