Lindsey Graham remembered at Washington National Cathedral with Trump, Netanyahu, and Zelensky among mourners

The late Senator Lindsey Graham, who died on 11 July at 71 from an aortic dissection, a tear in the heart's main artery, was memorialized in Washington on Tuesday with back-to-back services that drew an international roster of dignitaries. A morning ceremony in the Capitol Rotunda, followed by an afternoon funeral at the National Cathedral, closed with Trump’s eulogy before the senator’s body was returned to South Carolina for burial on Wednesday.

Tributes from the Senate and the White House

During the Capitol ceremony, Vice-President JD Vance remembered Graham as a compelling figure whose risque jokes could provoke laughter to the point of abdominal cramps. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, visibly emotional, said no one took the job more seriously yet no one was more capable of cracking up a room. Fighting back tears as he recalled Graham's humour, Thune said he was already looking forward to being made to laugh by him again. Sean Hannity, the Fox News host, also delivered a tribute at the cathedral.

Trump, in his eulogy, called Graham "a true American original" and "a force of nature". The president acknowledged their rocky 2016 start, Graham had called Trump a "jackass" and Trump had published Graham’s private cellphone number, but said they became great friends. Trump then recited the old number from the lectern: "202-228-0292, if anybody wants to give it a shot."

“No bill became law in the most exceptional republic in human history without Lindsey Graham having a say in it.”

Diplomatic sideline meetings

Before the services, Trump hosted Netanyahu and Zelensky at the White House. The sessions produced upbeat readouts. A senior Israeli official described the Netanyahu meeting as "extremely positive", focused on Iran and a reaffirmed commitment to preventing Iran from ever obtaining nuclear weapons. Zelensky posted on X that the two leaders discussed the recently agreed licence to produce Patriot interceptor missiles in Ukraine, along with "several other ideas". US special envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff are expected to travel to Kyiv soon to renew diplomatic efforts to end the war with Russia.

Graham’s arc from critic to confidant

Graham had once denounced Trump as a "race-baiting, xenophobic, religious bigot" before becoming one of his most visible Senate allies. The New York Times noted the contrast with John McCain’s 2018 cathedral service, from which Trump was absent, a shift that, it said, illustrated how Washington had accommodated itself to Trump. Graham’s embrace of the president made him a central player: a defence hawk who backed Israel and Ukraine vocally and defended the Iran war on cable news.

“Somewhere he’s probably smiling.”

A viral moment and the burial

A brief exchange between Trump and Vance, in which the president appeared to offer mints to the vice-president during the cathedral service, was caught on camera and spread across social media. The two days of formal remembrance end on Wednesday when Graham is laid to rest in South Carolina; his sister Darline Graham, appointed by Governor Henry McMaster to fill his seat, announced her intention to serve the remainder of his term.