From Joe Gandelman, Editor-In-Chief of The Moderate Voice:
Apparently, to some people real, timeless, eternal friendship is like incest: relative.
One of them seems to be South Carolina Sen. Lindsay Graham, who for years was considered the political best bud, a best friend, and near political twin of the late Arizona Sen. John McCain. But then a strange thing began to happen. Once McCain came down with cancer and started to weaken, Graham, who had been intensely critical of Donald Trump both as politician and someone not qualified to serve in the Oval Office, started to grow closer to Trump. And when Graham went golfing with him, he soon emerged as a nearly male version of Trump spinner Kellyanne Conway and even in some ways a Devin Nunes lite. To the extent that Grahman now is the living anthesis of McCain — and the old Graham.
Now, in recent days, with McCain not around to defend himself, Trump has renewed his attacks on the dead Senator who was once McCain’s political best bud, a best friend, and near political twin. McCain’s daughter Meghan has called Trump out.
And Graham? There was silence, until he got blasted on Twitter. After all the social media heat, Graham finally did defend McCain — but carefully avoided mentioning Graham’s name in the criticism. Was that because he’s up for re-election? Or are the conspiracy theorists right in their unproven suggestions that someone has some dirt on Graham? Most likely, his political cowardice is about a)his wanting to regain re-election at any cost b)his finger in the wind tells him if he wants power and a role in the GOP he has to be seen as not just a Trump supporter but Trump’s biggest defender.
But his stale nothing burger defense of McCain coming after all of Trump’s fierce attacks will do little to undo more adding to his image as a political jellyfish.