U.S. Senator Tim Scott choked back tears as he made the rounds on national new outlets Sunday, sharing his love for colleague and friend Lindsey Graham.
“He spent his life in public service because he loved America and felt like his story was not possible anywhere else,” said Sen. Scott on NBC’s Meet the Press.
The Republican Senator remembered how Graham grew up fast in a working-class family in the Midlands of South Carolina, losing both his mother and father when he was just 21 years old. He then became the legal guardian of his younger sister who he raised as his own.
Sen. Tim Scott
“That pain and misery led him into public service,” said Scott. “He wanted to make sure that no one felt invisible.”
More than 200 miles away from Graham’s hometown of Central, his presence is visible, even after his death.
Sen. Scott, for example, was raised by a single mother in North Charleston.
“For me personally, his lasting legacy is really brevity,” said Scott. “He could be short and witty at the same time, and funny.”
U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace
Republican Congresswoman Nancy Mace of Daniel Island saw that side too. Although the two didn’t always agree, she called Graham a mentor.
“He was funny. He was hard,” Mace told CBS News. “He was smart, brilliant, and knew how to fight.”
And, she said, Graham got things done.
“That’s who I sought if I needed money for roads or bridges or dredging along the coast,” she said. “I mean, he was just a force to be reckoned with.”
Charleston Mayor William Cogswell
Charleston Mayor William Cogswell expressed his appreciation for Graham and all he’s done for the Lowcountry, like helping to deepen the Charleston Harbor, extend the Battery seawall, and mitigate flooding.
“He loved this state and wasn’t shy about cutting through bureaucracy to bring common sense solutions that pushed South Carolina forward,” said Cogswell in a statement.
Dorchester County Council
In Dorchester County, local leaders say they’d just met with Graham in Summerville a little more than a week before his death.
“We exchanged ideas and he expressed his appreciation for the opportunity to serve and optimism for the future,” said County Council Chairman David Chinnis.
“His absence will leave a great void.”
Congressman Jim Clyburn
Democratic Congressman Jim Clyburn said he was “shocked and saddened” to learn of Sen. Graham’s passing this weekend.
The two didn’t always see eye to eye.
“We maintained a relationship grounded in mutual respect, even when our political differences were significant,” said Clyburn in a statement.
The two served decades together in Congress. Clyburn said Graham’s commitment to public service and the people he represented will remain an enduring part of his legacy.
