[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 113 (Monday, July 13, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3905-S3906]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       REMEMBERING LINDSEY GRAHAM

  Mr. LANKFORD. Mr. President, a lot of words have been said today 
about our colleague Lindsey Graham and his passing. As the Presiding 
Officer knows well, where my desk sits, I literally sit and stand 
directly behind Lindsey's chair--where right now there is a black drape 
and white roses--where he should be today, but he is not.
  We miss our colleague. We miss his humor. We miss his ideas. We miss 
his insight on a lot of things, his passion for Israel, his passion for 
national defense, his passion for the life of the unborn, his passion 
for this body, for our Nation, and for South Carolina.
  As much as we miss him here, we also understand full well there is a 
lot of grieving in South Carolina and especially with his family and 
with Darline, who will be here tomorrow, being sworn in to this body as 
she takes her seat, literally sitting in the same chair he was sitting 
in 2 weeks ago.
  So I thought it would be appropriate that we do more than just talk 
about him. Many of us have actually shared. We are praying for his 
family, we are praying for his staff, and we are praying for the folks 
around him. So I thought it would be appropriate here in this body that 
we don't just talk about him but that we actually fulfill the words 
that are on the wall in our building where it says ``In God We Trust'' 
and just to take a moment to just express that.
  I am going to take just a moment to be able to pray for Lindsey's 
family:
  Father, I do ask that You would help Darline and help the whole 
family right now as they grieve and struggle through this: the 10 
million emotions that she has to feel right now with the

[[Page S3906]]

loss of her brother and with the responsibility of coming to this body 
to hold this spot for months.
  I pray that You give her the strength that she needs, the insight 
that she will need in the days ahead, and that You would comfort her as 
she grieves.
  For all of Lindsey's family and so many friends, for his staff, God, 
we ask that You would fulfill what Your word says in Psalm 34:18, where 
it says that You are ``[near] to the brokenhearted,'' and You ``[save] 
those who are crushed in spirit.''
  We count on that today, Father, because this body will need Your 
help. Lindsey's family needs Your nearness. The people of South 
Carolina and so many friends will need that. So, Father, help us as we 
grieve and help us to be able to honor You in the days ahead. God, I am 
grateful that You are the One who cares for each of us and that You can 
be trusted every day. So we are grateful for that. So help us, guide us 
in the days ahead to do things well and to be able to honor You in our 
work. That is what we ask in the Name of Jesus. Amen.
  I remember the first week that I came into this body. Lindsey caught 
me just in a random conversation, and he said: You and I are the only 
Southern Baptists that are in the Senate now. Then he smiled at me and 
said: You should probably talk about that more than I do.
  And I have never forgotten that whole conversation. That was just 
classic Lindsey. He is a person that loved this body. He loved the 
country. He loved the people of South Carolina, and it showed. And as 
we grieve, I pray that we grieve together and that we go again and 
again and again to the source that hears our grieving and that meets us 
in our pain.
  I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. COONS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The Senator from Delaware.

                          ____________________