While the late Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) spent his final days aggressively pushing for the United States to impose stricter sanctions on Russia, President Donald Trump has instead said passing a cryptocurrency bill would be the best way to “honor” Graham’s legacy, making even a staunch Trump ally wince.
“The most obvious and logical way [to honor Graham] would be the sanctions bill, because it’s his bill,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND) in an interview Monday, as reported by Politico on Tuesday. “You’re not making anything up. He practically died trying to get it passed… Anything else becomes kind of political trickery in my mind.”
Graham died Saturday night of a brief and sudden illness, which preliminary findings have since found was likely related to “aortic dissection due to arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease.” And, while Graham was perhaps best known for his advocacy for foreign interventionism, Trump concluded that passing a bill backed by the cryptocurrency industry would be the best way to honor the South Carolina Republican.
The suggestion, Politico reported, “struck a false note to many lawmakers,” and also “underscored how quickly many in Washington are moving after the Republican senator’s death to claim his mantle for their own purposes.” Trump had already received scrutiny for using Graham’s death to promote his controversial voter ID bill known as the SAVE Act.
When asked directly whether he agreed with Trump, Cramer stopped short of a direct rebuke, instead reaching for what appeared to be a veiled critique.
“This place is full of circumstances where you get too cute by half,” Cramer said, adding that honoring Graham with a bill to impose sanctions on Russia would be the “obvious” choice.
Speaking with reporters on Monday, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) concurred with Cramer’s assessment.
“It would be a great tribute and legacy for Lindsey,” Thune said on passing a Russia sanctions bill, according to Politico.
Graham spent much of his career advocating for U.S. military intervention in countries abroad, including Iran, Iraq, Libya, Mexico, North Korea, Syria and Venezuela, among other nations.