Ben Domenech, S. Carolina and D.C. Scion, Honors Lindsay Graham: 'Not Going to See His Like Again'

Daily Wire Opinion Editor Ben Domenech appeared on the panel of "Fox News Sunday With Shannon Bream," and offered a touching homage to Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), who died unexpectedly early Sunday, reportedly due to heart failure caused by an aortic dissection, resultant from underlying heart disease.

Correspondent Gillian Turner subbed for host Bream, and opened the panel with the discussion of Graham's death. Turner let Domenech respond first, given his personal history with South Carolina and Graham.

TURNER: None of us in this life gets to choose our final moments. It seems to me if we could, the end coming when we are in the middle of doing everything is not a bad way to go. Unfinished Senate business, political business, U.S. foreign policy business.
DOMENECH: Look, the death of Lindsey Graham, I think, comes as a shock to a lot of us who viewed him as being somebody who was relentless and was always moving at rapid speed. I think it was one of the, frankly, one of the ways he emulated my father-in-law and really tried to do everything that he could with the time that he had.

Domenech is married to Meghan McCain, former co-host of "The View" and daughter of the late Sen. John McCain (R-AZ). So, Domenech has had more opportunity than most to interact with Graham, McCain, and the late Sen. Joe Lieberman (D/I-CT), the Senate colleagues and friends known as, "The Three Amigos."

Watch: Trump Weighs in on Lindsey Graham's 'Finest Moment' - Highlights on Kavanaugh

Domenech also alluded to Graham's compelling origin story. Both Graham's parents passed away within 15 months of each other, and as a young man still in college, Graham raised, and later adopted, his teenage sister. Graham not only completed college and law school, but served in the United States Air Force as a judge advocate general (JAG), before entering politics in 1992, first in the state House of Representatives, and then the United States House of Representatives in 1994. In 2002, Graham was elected to the United States Senate, filling the seat vacated by Sen. Strom Thurmond (D/R-SC) who served 47 years in the Senate before retiring at 100 years old.

Domenech continued:

He has an incredible life story. I'm a little more familiar with it, because I'm another son of the low country in South Carolina, and we have an appreciation for people who strive through the kind of young life experience that he had and made good.

While Domenech did not relate this full story, Domenech acknowledged the effect Graham's life of personal fortitude, pulling oneself up by their own bootstraps, and testament to his noble character in raising his teenage sister, was admired and appreciated by this son of South Carolina.

Domenech concluded:

You know, I was thinking this morning, I woke up to feed our six-month old at three in the morning. I don't always check my phone, but this time I did, and I saw this. And it was a shock to me, I woke up my wife and I told her.
The thing that I was thinking about the most was, you know, I used to sit at the end of a table in Arizona with John McCain and Joe Lieberman, and Lindsey, and we would argue about the world. And I would disagree with Lindsey a lot, but he was still friendly about it. And he was still charming, and funny.
They're all gone now. I remain. But it's one of these things that is still very much a touching memory to me, because these are people who cared deeply about this country. Who cared deeply about its role in the world. And, we live in an era where politics is ephemeral. Where people basically come into it as influencers. They don't try to actually make changes in the world. Lindsey tried to do that. He worked his entire life to do it. And I think we have to appreciate it, respect it, and honor him for the kind of senator he was. We are not going to see his like again.

WATCH:

WATCH: @bdomenech shared personal reflections of Senator Lindsey Graham, one of the 3 Amigos along with Senators John McCain and Joe Lieberman, "They're all gone now." pic.twitter.com/bLMUKfX2J3
— Fox News Sunday (@FoxNewsSunday) July 12, 2026

What hit me in Domenech's homage were the words, "they're all gone now. I remain." Among the Three Amigos, those were words Lindsey Graham most likely spoke after the 2018 death of John McCain from a glioblastoma brain tumor, and the death of Joe Lieberman from complications of a fall in 2024. Now, Graham has exited the pages of history, and Domenech remains to bear witness to his legacy and historical impact, as well as that of McCain and Lieberman.

Here are Graham's remarks after his friends' deaths in 2018 and 2024, and the Sunday tribute Meghan McCain wrote for Graham, featuring images of the Three Amigos together. Like her husband, McCain acknowledges that this type of bond of friendship in politics is all but extinct. McCain wrote:

That friendship is something that is so rare in politics, it is nearly extinct but I got to witness it first hand. They spent their lives united as friends and allies. They were brothers.

Lindsey Graham’s tribute to his dear friend Joe Lieberman broke every rule—because laughter was the only way to hide his broken heart. If you’ve never seen this before, it’s mush-watch material 👇🏻👇🏻 pic.twitter.com/mv5eLhhQ92
— Dovi Safier (@safier) July 12, 2026

The first time I met Lindsey Graham, I was 11 years old in a hotel lobby and he had just attended a political event with my Dad. He sat down next to me and told me that he loved my Dad. I remember liking his deep southern accent and smile and immediately felt comfortable around… pic.twitter.com/03mCGn9Xxl
— Meghan McCain (@MeghanMcCain) July 12, 2026

The first time I met Lindsey Graham, I was 11 years old in a hotel lobby and he had just attended a political event with my Dad. He sat down next to me and told me that he loved my Dad. I remember liking his deep southern accent and smile and immediately felt comfortable around him - he somehow seemed younger, hipper and more interesting than most of the political figures that rotated around my Dads orbit.
From the time he met my Dad they were fast friends and political comrades. In fact there are few memories I have of my Dad's political career and my life accompanying it that don't somehow involve Lindsey. He and Senator Joe Lieberman spent decades of their lives traveling together, fighting for the same causes on the Senate floor, spending holidays together and fighting for their version of the American dream. Those who followed them know they affectionately referred to each other as "The Three Amigos". My Dad was the soul of the group, Joe was the heart of the group and Lindsey was the fire and humor. Their combination bonded them as friends throughout their lives. That friendship is something that is so rare in politics, it is nearly extinct but I got to witness it first hand. They spent their lives united as friends and allies. They were brothers.
The memories I will hold dear of Lindsey is that was always the person you hoped you sat next to at a dinner party. Charming, very, very, very funny - like so funny he truly could have had a career in stand up comedy. He had an acerbic quick wit and he could win over even his deepest distractors. He was always full of stories that were always engaging and entertaining. He was literally never, ever boring. At his best he was filled with light and was always the last person to leave any table for work or fun. In fact, I used to joke with my Dad that I couldn't go out to dinner with him and my Dad as an adult unless I didn't have work the next day because they would always stay so long at the table and shut down the restaurant. Lindsey and my dad were also both Hams and would take every selfie, talk to every waiter and person in the place. Life around them was a big and alive in every possible way humans can be.
Lindsey brought humor and loyalty to my Dad's political defeats and was a constant source of support for my mother after my Dad's passing. As a politician his skills were unmatched which is why he won so many elections and was well on his way to winning another. When he spoke to voters he was direct, straight and felt their pain. He also loved people. He wasn’t one of those politicians who had to fake it, he loved being in elected office and serving our country.
The news of his sudden passing is shocking and deeply saddening for me and my family. Like many relationships in life, mine with Lindsey was complex in later years. I choose to remember the endless laughter and joy he brought to my family so many times, in so many ways. These memories are some of the most precious of my life. I hope that he is at peace and I hope he is in heaven drinking a white russian and fishing with my Dad and Joe.
"For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain." — Philippians 1:21

End of an era. RIP. pic.twitter.com/V3paYnAu5d
— Benjamin Domenech (@bdomenech) July 12, 2026

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