The sudden death of Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) reverberated through the capital over the weekend, and some of the veteran interventionist's final remarks have lent the loss an unsettling poignancy.

In a telephone call with an unnamed individual, Mr. Graham, 71, said he intended to seek medical attention for feeling unwell, but only after his scheduled appearance Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press." On the same call, the senator joked about deferring his own mortality.

"I can't die now. I still need to do the Russia sanctions, get Iran sorted out and do Israeli-Saudi normalization," the senator said, according to Axios.

Graham's office announced his death early Sunday, hours after he returned from Ukraine, where he toured a secret military drone factory and held talks with Volodymyr Zelensky.

The senator also spoke Saturday evening with President Donald Trump about the Ukraine trip and the bipartisan Russia sanctions package he had been working to advance through Congress alongside Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), the New York Post reports.

Preliminary findings released by the District of Columbia medical examiner's office indicated Graham died from "Aortic Dissection due to Arteriosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease." The condition, a tear in the body's main artery, predominantly affects older men.

Trump said Monday he has recommended that the senator's sister serve as his temporary replacement in the Senate. In a social-media post, the president urged Gov. Henry McMaster (R) to appoint Darline Graham Nordone to fill the remainder of Graham's term, which expires in January.

McMaster is expected to announce his selection later Monday. A special election is scheduled for next month to choose a new Republican nominee in the general election for the seat.

H/T CAPITAL News