On Sunday, Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden honored the late Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) in markedly different ways, with the former offering a bipartisan tribute and the latter reflecting on the South Carolina Republican’s political transformation.

Joe Biden Honors Years Of Friendship And Public Service

Joe Biden said he and former first lady Jill Biden were “shocked” by Graham’s sudden death, remembering their years of service together in the Senate despite frequent political disagreements.

“Lindsey and I served together in Congress for over a decade,” Biden wrote on X, noting they traveled abroad as members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and shared a belief in the importance of public service.

“We disagreed often, and sometimes loudly,” Biden said. “Like me, he loved the Senate as an institution, even with all its flaws and complexities.”

Biden extended his condolences to Graham’s family, staff, constituents and “everyone who loved him,” adding that he and Jill Biden were keeping them in their prayers.

Jill and I are shocked by the sudden passing of Lindsey Graham.

Lindsey and I served together in Congress for over a decade, and worked closely on many issues throughout the years. We traveled the world together as members of the Senate Foreign Relations committee. We disagreed…

— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) July 12, 2026

Graham’s office announced Sunday that the South Carolina Republican died Saturday evening following a brief and sudden illness.

Hunter Biden Recalls The Lindsey Graham ‘Before Trump’

Hunter Biden struck a more political tone, saying he chose to remember “the Lindsey Graham before Trump.”

Rather than focusing on Graham’s later years as one of President Donald Trump’s closest allies, Hunter Biden recalled the senator’s long friendship with the late Sen. John McCain and a period when lawmakers from opposing parties maintained close personal relationships.

“A time when senators from different parties could fight about politics and still be friends,” Hunter Biden wrote, adding that he believes in “an America after Trump.”

When I heard about Senator Graham’s death last night, the first thing I thought about was not all the things he said and did in service of Donald Trump. I thought of the time before Donald Trump when he was a brother to Senator John McCain.

A time when senators from different…

— Hunter Biden (@HunterBiden) July 12, 2026

Lindsey Graham’s Journey From Biden Ally To Trump Adviser

He also revived Graham’s praise for Joe Biden from a 2015 interview during Graham’s unsuccessful presidential campaign, when the senator said, “If you can’t admire Joe Biden as a person, you’ve got a problem,” calling him “the nicest person I’ve ever met in politics. As good a man as God ever created.”

The remarks stood in sharp contrast to Graham’s later political evolution.

After initially calling Trump “unfit for office” during the 2016 Republican primary, Graham became one of Trump’s closest advisers, later saying he never would have imagined their eventual alliance.

After Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory, Graham told the former president during a phone call that he had only criticized Hunter Biden to satisfy Trump supporters, according to a 2021 New York Times report.

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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