2026年7月14日 美国东部时间凌晨5:45 / 福克斯新闻
格雷厄姆刚结束第10次乌克兰之行，距离推进一项俄罗斯制裁法案仅数日之遥，便与世长辞
作者：摩根·菲利普斯 福克斯新闻
唐纳德·特朗普总统向已故参议员林赛·格雷厄姆致敬，称他为布雷特·卡瓦诺辩护是国会历史上十大时刻之一。
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2015年，参议员林赛·格雷厄姆称唐纳德·特朗普为“蠢货”，并警告共和党人提名特朗普将是一场灾难。特朗普则在一场竞选集会上大声读出了格雷厄姆的个人手机号码，鼓动支持者致电这位南卡罗来纳州参议员。
几乎没有哪一对政治对手的关系会如此不可能演变为华盛顿最具影响力的外交政策伙伴关系之一。
特朗普上台时承诺结束美国的“无休止战争”，并挑战了共和党数十年来的外交政策正统观念。相比之下，格雷厄姆在其三十年公职生涯中始终毫不掩饰地支持美国在海外投射力量。
从“耻辱”到“家人”：特朗普与林赛·格雷厄姆的非凡历程
然而在接下来的十年里，格雷厄姆成为了少数能在国家安全问题上定期接触特朗普总统的议员之一，成为共和党在伊朗、乌克兰、以色列和北约问题上最具影响力的声音之一。
参议员林赛·格雷厄姆（南卡罗来纳州共和党人）与唐纳德·特朗普总统、商务部长霍华德·卢特尼克于2026年1月4日搭乘空军一号返回华盛顿途中接受记者采访。（吉姆·沃森/法新社通过盖蒂图片社拍摄）
他的参议院职业生涯围绕外交政策展开。当许多议员周末返乡时，格雷厄姆却常常在海外会见各国总统、访问战区，并努力在盟友与白宫之间斡旋。
在其职业生涯末期，他的办公室已成为外国领导人试图了解或影响特朗普政府的非正式中转站。
在这位参议员周六突然去世后的采访中，特朗普称格雷厄姆“就像家人一样”，并表示在格雷厄姆去世前几小时刚从乌克兰返回后，他是最后与这位南卡罗来纳州共和党人交谈的人之一。
随着特朗普以“美国优先”议程重塑共和党外交政策，格雷厄姆成为了国会中少数能在战争与和平问题上定期接触总统的声音之一。他经常敦促特朗普在海外保持强有力的美国参与——尽管总统质疑长期存在的联盟，并警告不要进行长期军事干预。
唐纳德·特朗普与林赛·格雷厄姆于2025年6月28日在高尔夫球场合影。（参议员林赛·格雷厄姆通过X平台提供）
格雷厄姆并未成为另一位因特朗普上台而被边缘化的共和党鹰派，而是与总统建立了最亲密的工作关系，在政府处理从乌克兰、伊朗到以色列和北约的冲突时，为他带来了不同寻常的影响力。
格雷厄姆究竟只是强化了特朗普的本能，还是帮助塑造了这些本能，可能会成为他外交政策遗产中最具决定性的问题之一。
格雷厄姆据称在预定电视采访前拒绝医疗帮助
“他会不停地给我打电话，”特朗普周一告诉福克斯新闻，“我会说，‘别再打给我了，林赛。’这太不可思议了，他从来都不停。他是个工作狂——彻头彻尾的政治工作狂。”
同事们表示，格雷厄姆全身心投入参议院工作，尤其是作为美国与全球盟友之间的非正式特使。
在去世前的几个小时里，格雷厄姆告诉一位密友他身体不适，但开玩笑说他现在不能死，因为还有工作要做。他正准备推动一项在参议院搁置已久的两党俄罗斯制裁法案，仍专注于推进沙特与以色列关系正常化，并认为特朗普政府尚未完成对伊朗的对抗。
他刚完成第10次乌克兰之行，不仅与总统弗拉基米尔·泽连斯基保持着密切关系，还与以色列总理本雅明·内塔尼亚胡、北约秘书长马克·吕特、海湾国家领导人以及世界各地的其他人士保持着紧密联系。
据退役陆军四星上将、战争研究所主席兼福克斯新闻高级战略分析师杰克·基恩称，格雷厄姆认为影响力来自于亲身接触。
“他对写专栏文章或发表演讲不感兴趣，他想与世界各国领导人进行直接接触，”与格雷厄姆是朋友的基恩告诉福克斯新闻数字频道，“他感兴趣的是取得成果。”
2016年总统初选中被特朗普击败后，格雷厄姆承认这位当时的房地产大亨比他更了解美国民众。
“他比我们更了解美国民众，我们没能像他那样有效地做到这一点，真是耻辱，”基恩援引格雷厄姆当时的话说。
于是格雷厄姆开始努力为总统效力。
“格雷厄姆比华盛顿几乎任何人都更了解世界，他可能比特朗普总统自己的任命官员更了解许多外国领导人，”基恩说，“他有意识地决定通过提供建议和咨询来帮助总统，这逐渐发展成了个人和职业双重关系。”
格雷厄姆的世界观与已故亚利桑那州共和党参议员约翰·麦凯恩和康涅狄格州民主党参议员乔·利伯曼一同形成，他曾与二人多次海外出访。这三人被称为“三剑客”，倡导以美国军事领导、支持民主盟友以及对抗专制对手为基础的干预主义共和党外交政策。
格雷厄姆在伊朗谈判问题上公开与特朗普持不同意见——他更倾向于打击和政权更迭——并反复推动在乌克兰战争中对俄罗斯采取更强硬立场。
这些信念有时使他更接近传统的共和党外交政策，而非特朗普的“美国优先”本能，尽管他努力保持作为总统最亲密顾问之一的地位。
特朗普的外交政策经常在军事对抗与外交克制之间摇摆。而格雷厄姆则很少如此。
参议员林赛·格雷厄姆于6月10日，也就是他去世前一天在基辅留影。（瓦伦丁·奥列连科/路透社摄）
每当特朗普似乎准备与伊朗进行和谈时，格雷厄姆都会遵循一套熟悉的策略：提醒白宫，国会最终将不得不审查任何持久协议。
特朗普在6月宣布与伊朗达成谅解备忘录后，格雷厄姆迅速辩称，任何持久协议都需要国会审查，甚至暗示副总统JD·万斯最终将不得不在国会山为该协议辩护。
到去世时，格雷厄姆已经在华盛顿塑造了他想要的角色：白宫、国会与外国领导人之间值得信赖的中间人。
明尼苏达州民主党参议员艾米·克洛布查尔将格雷厄姆描述为“对自己的工作和肩负的职责有着孩童般的热情”。
“即使到了六十多岁，他在异国他乡下飞机时眼里仍闪烁着光芒，看着我仿佛在说，你能相信我们真的在这里做这件事吗？”她在X平台上写道。
“人生中极少有时刻能让你恰好身处你想去的地方，在你想要的时刻，与你想在一起的人，做你想做的事——林赛的每一刻都是如此，”白宫副幕僚长斯蒂芬·米勒在X平台上写道。
“林赛是参议员中的参议员。这份工作对他来说就是一切。他真心相信这个职位的荣耀以及其背后的崇高传承，而他是当之无愧的继承者。”
如果意味着失去总统的支持，格雷厄姆很少会在意赢得一场争论。他花了一年多时间修改搁置已久的俄罗斯制裁法案，并与白宫进行谈判，当时特朗普正寻求与俄罗斯总统弗拉基米尔·普京进行外交接触。就在去世前几天，格雷厄姆才宣布他与政府达成协议，推动该法案推进。
尽管特朗普经常质疑北约的价值，并要求盟友承担更多军费负担，但格雷厄姆将美国的联盟视为其最大的战略优势之一。他大体上同意欧洲国家需要在国防上增加开支，但辩称北约本身在威慑俄罗斯和投射美国力量方面仍然不可或缺。
格雷厄姆对以色列的支持同样是其世界观的核心。他将以色列视为美国在中东最亲密的伙伴，多年来一直致力于加强以色列与阿拉伯国家的关系，将沙特与以色列关系正常化视为重塑中东地区、进一步孤立伊朗的历史性机遇。
十年来，格雷厄姆证明了在华盛顿，接近权力与正式权威同样重要。如果没有格雷厄姆在华盛顿，乌克兰现在可能担心失去了一位在华盛顿不可或缺的倡导者。
“这是巨大且完全出乎意料的损失，”泽连斯基所在政党的议员亚历山大·梅列日科告诉美联社，“他确实是不可或缺的。我甚至不知道现在特朗普随行人员中谁能像他一样重要。”
“他是乌克兰、我们的总统与特朗普之间最紧密的联系，”他补充道，“我们在特朗普随行人员中的地位可能会变弱。”
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目前尚不清楚谁能像格雷厄姆一样同时接触宾夕法尼亚大道两端的人士，将他标志性的俄罗斯制裁法案推进参议院并提交总统签署。
就目前而言，总统将在没有这位从不羞于敦促他采取更强硬行动的朋友的情况下，处理乌克兰和中东的战争。
Trump’s fiercest GOP critic became his most influential voice on war and peace
July 14, 2026 5:45am EDT / Fox News
Graham had just returned from his 10th trip to Ukraine and was days from advancing a Russia sanctions bill when he died
By Morgan Phillips Fox News
President Donald Trump pays tribute to late Sen. Lindsey Graham, ranking his defense of Brett Kavanaugh as one of the top 10 moments in congressional history.
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In 2015, Sen. Lindsey Graham called Donald Trump a “jackass” and warned Republicans that nominating him would be a disaster. Trump responded by reading Graham’s personal cellphone number aloud during a campaign rally, encouraging supporters to call the South Carolina senator.
Few political rivalries seemed less likely to evolve into one of Washington’s most consequential foreign policy partnerships.
Trump rose to power promising to end America’s “endless wars” and challenging decades of Republican foreign policy orthodoxy. Graham, by contrast, remained throughout his three decades in public service an unabashed advocate of projecting American power abroad.
FROM ‘DISGRACE’ TO ‘FAMILY’: TRUMP’S REMARKABLE JOURNEY WITH LINDSEY GRAHAM
Yet over the next decade, Graham became one of the few lawmakers with regular access to President Trump on questions of national security, emerging as one of the Republican Party’s most influential voices on Iran, Ukraine, Israel and NATO.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina, speaks with reporters aboard Air Force One with President Donald Trump and Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick on the way back to Washington, D.C., on Jan. 4, 2026.(Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images)
He had built his Senate career around foreign policy. While many lawmakers spent weekends back home, Graham was often overseas meeting presidents, visiting war zones and trying to broker agreements between allies and the White House.
By the end of his career, his office had become an unofficial waypoint for foreign leaders trying to understand — or influence — the Trump administration.
In interviews following the senator’s sudden death Saturday, Trump described Graham as “like a member of the family” and said he was among the final people to speak with the South Carolina Republican after he returned from Ukraine just hours before his death.
As Trump reshaped Republican foreign policy around an “America First” agenda, Graham became one of the few congressional voices with regular access to the president on questions of war and peace. He frequently pressed Trump to maintain a muscular U.S. role abroad — even as the president questioned long-standing alliances and warned against prolonged military interventions.
Donald Trump and Lindsey Graham pose for a picture on a golf course June 28, 2025.(Sen. Lindsey Graham via X)
Rather than becoming another Republican hawk sidelined by Trump’s ascent, Graham cultivated one of the closest working relationships with the president, giving him unusual influence as the administration navigated conflicts from Ukraine and Iran to Israel and NATO.
Whether Graham simply reinforced Trump’s instincts — or helped shape them — may become one of the defining questions of his foreign policy legacy.
GRAHAM REPORTEDLY REFUSED MEDICAL HELP BEFORE SCHEDULED TV APPEARANCE
“He would call me all the time,” Trump told Fox News Monday. “I’d say, ‘Stop calling me, Lindsey.’ It was amazing. He just never stopped. He was a worker — a total workaholic politician.”
Colleagues said Graham lived and breathed the work of the Senate, particularly serving as an informal envoy between the U.S. and allies around the world.
In the hours before his death, Graham told a confidant he wasn’t feeling well but joked he couldn’t die now because he still had work to do. He was preparing to push a long-stalled bipartisan Russia sanctions bill through the Senate, remained focused on advancing Saudi-Israel normalization and believed the Trump administration had not yet finished confronting Iran.
He had just completed his 10th trip to Ukraine, and maintained tight relationships not only with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy but also with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, Gulf leaders and others around the world.
Graham believed that influence came from showing up, according to Jack Keane, a retired Army four-star general, the chairman of the Institute for the Study of War and Fox News Senior Strategic Analyst.
“He wasn’t interested in writing op-ed pieces or making speeches, he wanted firsthand contact with leaders of the world.” Keane, who counted Graham as a friend, told Fox News Digital. “He was interested in getting the results.”
Graham, upon being beaten by Trump in the 2016 primary, conceded that the then-real estate mogul understood the American public better than he did .
“He understood the American people better than we did, and shame on us for not doing it as effectively as him,” Graham said at the time, according to Keane.
So Graham went to work making himself useful for the president.
“Graham knew the world better than almost anyone in Washington, and he likely knew many foreign leaders better than President Trump’s own appointees,” Keane said. “He made a conscious decision to help the president by offering advice and counsel, which grew into both a personal and professional relationship.”
Graham’s worldview was shaped alongside late Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Joe Lieberman, D-Conn., with whom he traveled extensively overseas. The trio —known as the “Three Amigos” — championed an interventionist Republican foreign policy rooted in American military leadership, support for democratic allies and confronting authoritarian adversaries.
Graham publicly disagreed with Trump over Iran negotiations — preferring strikes and regime change — and repeatedly pushed for a tougher line against Russia in the war on Ukraine.
Those convictions at times put him closer to traditional Republican foreign policy than to Trump’s “America First” instincts, even as he worked to remain one of the president’s closest advisors.
Trump’s approach to foreign policy often shifted between military confrontation and diplomatic restraint. Graham’s rarely did.
Sen. Lindsey Graham is pictured in Kyiv on June 10, one day before his passing.(Valentyn Ogirenko/Reuters)
Whenever Trump appeared to move toward a negotiated settlement with Iran, Graham followed a familiar playbook: remind the White House that Congress ultimately would have to review any lasting agreement.
After Trump announced a memorandum of understanding with Iran in June, Graham quickly argued that any lasting deal would require congressional scrutiny and even suggested Vice President JD Vance would ultimately have to defend it on Capitol Hill.
By the time of his death, Graham had fashioned exactly the role he wanted in Washington: trusted interlocutor between the White House, Congress and foreign leaders.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., described Graham as having a “kid-like exuberance about his job and the responsibilities he was given.”
“Even in his sixties he would get off a plane in a foreign land with a twinkle in his eye and look at me as if to say, can you believe we are actually here and doing this?” she wrote on X.
Very rarely in life do you get to be exactly where you want to be, when you want to be there, with who you want to be with, doing precisely what you want to do — that was every moment for Lindsey,” White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller wrote on X.
“Lindsey was a senator’s senator. The job was everything to him. Truly did he believe in the splendor of the office and the noble lineage behind it, of which he was the worthy heir.”
Graham rarely seemed interested in winning an argument if it meant losing the president. He spent more than a year revising his long-stalled Russia sanctions legislation and negotiating with the White House as Trump pursued his own diplomatic outreach to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Only days before his death did Graham announce that he had reached an agreement with the administration to move the bill forward.
While Trump frequently questioned the value of NATO and demanded allies shoulder more of the burden, Graham viewed America’s alliances as one of its greatest strategic advantages. He generally agreed that European nations needed to spend more on defense, but argued the alliance itself remained indispensable to deterring Russia and projecting American power.
Graham’s support for Israel was equally central to his worldview. He regarded Israel as America’s closest partner in the Middle East and spent years working to strengthen ties between Israel and Arab states, viewing Saudi-Israeli normalization as a historic opportunity to reshape the region while further isolating Iran.
Graham spent a decade proving that in Washington, proximity to power could matter as much as formal authority. Without Graham in Washington, Ukraine now fears it may have lost an indispensable advocate in Washington.
“Huge and absolutely unexpected loss,” said Oleksandr Merezhko, a lawmaker with Zelenskyy’s party, told the AP. “He was truly indispensable. I even don’t know who might be as important for us now in Trump’s entourage.”
“He was the closest link between Ukraine, our president and Trump,” he added. “Our position in Trump’s entourage might be weaker.”
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It’s unclear who will be able to usher Graham’s signature Russia sanctions bill through the Senate and onto the president’s desk with the same access to both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue.
For now, the president will navigate wars in Ukraine and the Middle East without the friend who was never shy about telling him to hit harder.
