Senator Lindsey Graham’s Art of the Kneel

From Hawk to Trump Bootlicker

Photo by Darren McCollester/Getty Images

South Carolina’s very own Senator Lindsey Graham has never been known for his consistency. Hell, look what he did to Joe Biden. But his latest about-face on Ukraine is a new low. Yes, even for him. After years of posturing as a defender of Ukraine’s sovereignty and a staunch critic of Vladimir Putin, Senator Graham has now fully contorted himself into the role of Trump’s obedient lackey. His latest betrayal? Calling for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to resign following a disastrous Oval Office meeting between Zelenskyy, Trump, and Vance. The meeting where Trump and Vance ambushed President Zelenskyy.

The meeting was intended to be a discussion about Ukraine’s future, ending the war, a potential minerals deal, and US support. Instead, it turned into an all-out ambush. An assault on President Zelenskyy by the President and Vice President of the United States. It was a complete debacle. Even Saturday Night Live knows it. A microcosm of everything wrong with Trump’s foreign policy. His cowardice, lack of empathy, and complete ignorance on display for the entire world to see. Trump berated Zelenskyy, accusing him of "gambling with World War III." Vance, proving himself a loyal foot soldier to Trump’s brand of authoritarian appeasement, piled on, criticizing Zelenskyy for his supposed hostility and ungratefulness. The meeting ended with no agreements, no progress, disastrously—a clear signal to Putin that Trump has no interest in supporting Ukraine’s fight for survival. How terribly embarrassing for our country. It doesn’t take a foreign policy expert to know that the Trump administration is on the wrong side of history.

Then enters Lindsey Graham, ever the opportunist, a coward who stands for nothing. Rather than standing up for Ukraine and President Zelenskyy, the leader who has risked everything for his country and for democracies around the world, Graham chose to parrot Trump’s talking points. He expressed complete disdain for President Zelenskyy, even calling on him to resign. He suggested that Ukraine send “someone we can do business with,” as if Ukraine’s fight for existence was nothing more than a business transaction. It was a cowardly, disgraceful move from a man who once stood steadfastly in defense of Ukraine.

But here’s the thing, Lindsey Graham is up for re-election. And South Carolinians have a chance to hold him accountable for this disgraceful betrayal, not just of Ukraine, but of the Western values he’s elected to defend. He’s banking on short-term memories, but voters here don’t have to let him get away with it, nor should we. His spinelessness, his willingness to sell out democracy for his own political survival, should disqualify him from serving another term. South Carolina can and must do better.

Let’s be clear, President Zelenskyy is not the problem. His fiercest critics can only say he never wears a suit. Can you believe it? The President from a war torn country doesn’t wear a suit. Nevermind that he has been as brave as any leader, leading his people through a literal existential crisis. He has remained in Kyiv while Russian missiles rain down. He has refused to bend to Putin’s demands. He has demonstrated a level of courage that men like Lindsey Graham, Donald Trump, and JD Vance will never know.

The only identifiable problem is the United States turning its back on Ukraine, while Republicans like Lindsey Graham sit idly by and allow it to happen. For decades, America has been the defender of democracy. We have been the keepers of global stability, the force standing between free nations and the dictators and tyrants who seek to destroy them. And now, Trump and enablers like Lindsey Graham are ready to abandon that legacy. They are willing to let Putin’s bloody invasion succeed. And for what? All because Trump sees Ukraine not as a noble ally but as an inconvenience to his relationship with Russia’s dictator. Imagine what the late Senator John McCain would be saying about his trusted confidant if he were still alive.

It was especially galling to hear accusations that Zelenskyy is ungrateful for US support. Ukraine has paid for every ounce of aid with the blood of its soldiers and civilians. Tens of thousands of Ukrainians have died defending their homeland from an unprovoked invasion by Russia. Cities reduced to rubble. Families torn apart. And yet, Trump and his allies push the lie that Ukraine is somehow unappreciative, as if gratitude is measured in subservience rather than sacrifice. But the fact is, Zelenskyy has expressed his gratitude over and over again.

We have long understood that the alternative to American leadership is a world where tyrants like Putin make the rules. Where murderous authoritarian regimes run unchecked, killing opposition (literally), swallowing up weaker nations, and imposing their will through violence. Supporting Ukraine has never just been about Ukraine—it has been about ensuring that democracy and freedom are not extinguished by brute force. And yet, here we are, watching an American president, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, and his cult of followers undermine that principle, not just with inaction but with outright hostility.

I never thought I’d live to see the day when defending Ukraine meant standing against the United States government. But here we are, with Trump groveling at Putin’s feet and Lindsey Graham spinelessly licking Trump’s boots, betraying our country and our allies with every cowardly breath. This isn’t leadership—it’s treason wrapped in sycophancy. Slava Ukraini.