In the hours after Sen. Lindsey Graham's (R-SC) sudden death Saturday night, both President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took to cable news to highlight the late senator's support for their own political priorities, sparking a swift and immediate backlash from critics.
Trump called into NBC News, Sunday to champion Graham’s support for the SAVE Act, his controversial voter ID bill that has stalled in the Senate, much to Trump’s frustration. Trump claimed that Graham “wanted to pass the SAVE Act” and that his death was a “big blow” to the bill.
Over on Fox News, Netanyahu recalled what he called his “last conversation” with Graham, who he said was "so concerned with [Israel's] security" that he pushed Netanyahu to support "increasing" U.S. aid to Israel.
Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) also took to Fox News Sunday morning to push for the passage of the SAVE Act, telling Fox News’ Maria Bartiromo that “one of the best ways we can honor Lindsey Graham’s legacy would be to pass [the SAVE Act] this month.”
Brett Meiselas, one of the co-founders of the progressive media organization MeidasTouch, reacted to Trump and Netanyahu’s commentary with contempt.
“All these cretins jumping at his death to push their political goals,” Meiselas wrote in a social media post on X to his nearly 275,000 followers. “[Netanyahu] jumps to pushing for military aid for Israel. Trump immediately says Lindsey would have wanted the SAVE Act passed. A bunch of sickos.”
Meiselas’ colleague, Ron Filipkowski, the editor-in-chief for MeidasTouch, concurred with Meiselas’ critique.
“What a surprise that Netanyahu says his last conversation with Lindsey was that he wanted US military aid to Israel to continue forever,” Filipkowski wrote in a social media post on X to his more than 1 million followers.
Duncan Smith, a sports journalist and contributor to The Athletic Detroit, offered a blunt take on Trump's remarks.
“Lindsey did all that groveling and this is how Trump will remember him,” Smith wrote in a social media post on X.
All these cretins jumping at his death to push their political goals. Netayanhu jumps to pushing for military aid for Israel. Trump immediately says Lindsey would have wanted the SAVE Act passed. A bunch of sickos. https://t.co/JntAusmftv
— Brett Meiselas (@BMeiselas) July 12, 2026