Graham was scheduled to appear on ‘Meet the Press’ after Ukraine trip

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who died suddenly Saturday night, was scheduled to appear on NBC News’s “Meet the Press” after returning from a trip to Ukraine.

“Senator Lindsey Graham was scheduled to appear on @MeetThePress this morning,” host Kristen Welker wrote on the social platform X. “It would have been his 64th appearance on this broadcast. We are sending our deepest condolences to his family and colleagues.”

Welker added that President Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will appear on the show “to reflect on his life and legacy.”

The “Meet the Press” X account shared Saturday night that Graham was slated to appear as a guest, along with Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.).

Graham died after a “brief and sudden illness,” his office wrote Saturday night. He was 71.

The Republican senator, who was well-known as a defense hawk, was in the middle of seeking his fifth term in the upper chamber. He served as chair of the Senate Budget Committee and also served on the Judiciary Committee and Committee on Appropriations, in addition to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.

Trump called his longtime ally “a true American Patriot.” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky praised Graham, having just met with him the day before.

“Lindsey was a true defender of freedom and the values that make our world safer,” Zelensky wrote on X. “He visited Ukraine ten times during the years of Russia’s full-scale invasion and was here with our people when it was most needed. We remained in constant dialogue, and I will miss our conversations.”

Netanyahu said his country has lost “one of its greatest friends. America has lost a great patriot. I have lost a beloved friend.”

“In our recent meeting, I said, ‘Lindsey is a great friend of Israel and a cherished friend of mine. We have no better friend than Lindsey,'” Netanyahu wrote on X. “Lindsey understood that the security of Israel and America are inseparable. He devoted his life to defending America, strengthening our alliance and standing up for the free world.”