Trump Endorses Lindsey Graham's Sister to Replace Him

Uhhh... I don't like politics becoming so dynastic.

But I guess the idea is that his sister taking over for the rest of the term would be non-controversial right now. All of the people who want to run for the seat also want to be appointed to fill out the term, because that gives them a huge incumbency advantage. Appointing Graham's sister to the seat avoids that... assuming she really only serves for the remaining months.

Graham raised his sister after his parents died.

President Trump posted on his Truth Social minutes before that he had recommended Graham's "wonderful sister" to serve as interim senator until a special election can be held.

South Carolina Republican Gov. Henry McMaster will be choosing that replacement. He's scheduled a 4 p.m. press conference to make that announcement.

"This would be a fabulous tribute to Lindsey, who loved her dearly!" Trump added.

Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) agreed and told The Post that he has known the late South Carolina senator's sister "for years and she's a constituent of mine in Lexington County."

"I have faith in Gov. McMaster that he will make the right decision, but I would support the president's recommendation," Wilson said.

Preliminary findings from the Washington, DC, medical examiner's office determined that Lindsey Graham died of a ruptured aorta brought on by chronic heart disease.

Emergency responders arrived at the Republican senator's Capitol Hill home at around 8:30 p.m. after getting a call about an individual suffering from chest pains, according to scanner audio.

Medics performed CPR as Graham went into cardiac arrest a half hour later. He was then rushed to George Washington University Hospital, where he died.

When running for president in 2016, Graham had even joked about his sister serving as his first lady along with a "rotating" cast of other friends.

"I've got a sister, she could play that role if necessary," he told the Daily Mail in a June 2015 interview when asked about being the first bachelor in the White House since former President Woodrow Wilson.

The Graham parents had run a bar and pool hall in Central, S.C., where for a time they had raised their two kids in a backroom, the senator later shared in a memoir.

After their deaths, Graham enlisted in the Air Force and became Darline's legal guardian so he could use his military benefits to support his sister.

...

"Of all the things that have happened in my life, her turning out so well is the highlight of it by far," he was quoted as telling C-SPAN in 2015, per the outlet.

Trump ordered the White House's flags to half-mast.

President Trump announced on Sunday that he has ordered "all American Flags throughout the United States" lowered to half-mast until Saturday night at 6 P.M.

"In honor of the remarkable life and achievements of Senator Lindsey Graham, a dear friend of mine, and a truly great man, who achieved so much for our Country, and his beloved Home State of South Carolina, I am ordering all American Flags throughout the United States lowered to Half Mast until Saturday evening at 6 P.M. GOD BLESS YOU LINDSEY! President DONALD J. TRUMP," he wrote on X.

South Carolina polls are scrambling to be appointed Senator, and boy oh boy I sure hope they don't pick the flaky tramp Nancy Mace, who'll be unemployed in months.

CHARLESTON, S.C. -- CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) -- The death of Sen. Lindsey Graham, who was running for a fifth term, begins a tumultuous new chapter in South Carolina politics during a year that has already been full of upheaval.

As the conservative state's senior senator and an influential ally of President Donald Trump, Graham was presumed to be on a glide path toward reelection.

Now, Gov. Henry McMaster must choose a temporary replacement who can serve until January while the state also prepares a special primary so voters can choose a new Republican nominee for the general election.

The rare open Senate seat has ignited a scramble among South Carolina's most ambitious conservatives, who have been eager to climb the political ladder.

Republicans just finished a sprawling and bruising contest to figure out their nominee for succeeding McMaster, who is wrapping up his second term. State Attorney General Alan Wilson won the nomination, overcoming a field that included Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette, Rep. Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman -- all of whom are now eyeing Graham's seat following his death over the weekend.

According to South Carolina law, a one-week filing period for a special primary election begins on the second Tuesday after the candidate's death, or July 21.

The special primary election would be held on the second Tuesday after that filing period closes, or Aug. 11. Any necessary runoff would follow two weeks after that, or Aug. 25.

From that point, the new nominee would have just over two months to campaign for the general election on Nov. 3.

There's a snag in the timetable:

All of this is problematic according to federal law, which requires military and overseas ballots to go out 45 days before any federal election. For the general election primary, that would have been June 27. Federal Election Commission officials didn't immediately return a message seeking clarity about the process.

Here are some of the possible replacements, including, unfortunately, Nancy Mace.

And including Scott Bessent -- who I think we need to keep where he is.

Meanwhile, we don't have to worry about replacing Mitch McConnell -- for the moment, anyway.

Sen. Mitch McConnell, who has been in the hospital since June 11 with an undisclosed medical diagnosis, said in a statement Sunday that he suffered a fall last month that left him briefly unconscious and landed him in the hospital.

The lawmaker said he also had to deal with a "mild case of pneumonia."

"My doctors have confirmed that I didn't break any bones or suffer a concussion. I didn't have a heart attack or a stroke. I don't have any tumors or hemorrhages. But I was briefly unconscious and was taken to the hospital. While receiving excellent care over the past several weeks, I've also had to deal with a mild case of pneumonia," McConnell said in the statement.

McConnell's office has provided few details about what landed the senator in the hospital last month, despite a growing demand from many, including Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear.

In the statement, a letter from McConnell to his fellow Kentuckians, he said he hesitated to be more public about what happened to him.

Incredibly, the sneaky, secretive McConnell claimed that his refusal to keep his constituents informed was just some widely-shared penchant for skullduggery shared by all members of his generation:

"You all know how folks of my generation often hesitate to share the vulnerability that comes with growing older. Even in the public eye, I feel that same instinct -- I can't help it," McConnell said in his note.

"I can't help it." Even though I have a responsibility to my constituents and the country, "I can't help it." That's just me and my generation. You young'uns wouldn't understand about, you know, lying.

"But at the same time, I've had more than my share of experience with physical vulnerabilities. Surviving childhood polio meant spending my entire life with mobility challenges. They haven't exactly gotten easier to manage with age. And last month, I took a fall which landed me in the hospital," he said.

Oh my goodness, he played the "childhood polio" card. What an absolute asshole.

We are ruled not just by men without chests, but also, men without souls.

posted by Disinformation Expert Ace at 01:10 PM

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