Lindsey Graham
|
|
Lindsey_Graham.jpg
Lindsey Graham
Lindsey Olin Graham (born July 9, 1955) is an American politician from South Carolina. A member of the Republican Party noted for his conservative views, he is currently the senior United States Senator from that state. He serves on the Armed Services committee.
Born in Central, South Carolina, Graham graduated from the University of South Carolina at Columbia with a B.A. in 1977 and from its school of law with a J.D. in 1981, and eventually entering private practice as a lawyer. He has been involved in the United States Air Force since 1982, serving in it until 1988, and later in the South Carolina Air National Guard and as an Air Force reservist. During the Gulf War, he was recalled to active duty, serving as a Judge Advocate at McIntire Air National Guard Station in Eastover, South Carolina, where he helped brief departing pilots on the laws of war. In 2004, Graham received a promotion to Colonel in the US Air Force Reserves at a White House ceremony by President George W. Bush along with Indiana Congressman Steve Buyer, who was promoted to Colonel in the US Army Reserves.
In 1992, he was elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives and in 1994 to the United States House of Representatives, where he quickly became powerful as a member of the Judiciary Committee during the impeachment attempt against president Bill Clinton in 1998. He opposed some articles, but vigorously supported others. In January and February of 1999, after two impeachment articles had been passed by the full house, he was one of the managers who brought the House's case to Clinton's trial in the Senate. Though the Senate did not convict Clinton, Graham became nationally known.
He was reelected to the House in 1996, 1998 and 2000. In 2002, upon the retirement of the long-serving Senator Strom Thurmond, the much younger Graham was nominated for the United States Senate in 2002 and defeated his Democratic opponent, Alex Sanders.
Though his stances are often conservative, he has gained a reputation for being a maverick and speaking out against or criticizing the party line, as well as being open to making compromises. This has landed him in a select group of other traditionally conservative Republicans such as Sen. John McCain and Sen. Chuck Hagel who are widely acknowledged as "mavericks" for their fearlessness toward party pressure. Template:Wikiquote
On May 23, 2005, Graham was one of fourteen moderate senators to forge a compromise on the Democrats' use of the judicial filibuster, thus blocking the Republican leadership's attempt to implement the so-called "nuclear option". Under the agreement, the Democrats would retain the power to filibuster a Bush judicial nominee only in an "extraordinary circumstance", and the three most conservative Bush appellate court nominees (Janice Rogers Brown, Priscilla Owen and William Pryor) would receive a vote by the full Senate. Despite being one of the Senate's most conservative members, he worked on the deal with seven other Democrats to prevent the "nuclear option" from occurring. This has led to anger among the GOP conservative base in his home state.
External link
- Official website (http://lgraham.senate.gov/)
| Preceded by: Strom Thurmond | U.S. Senator (Class 3) from South Carolina 2003- | Succeeded by: Incumbent Template:End box Template:SC-FedRep Template:Current U.S Senators |