(CNN) — The late GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham will be honored next week with funeral services spanning two days that will include a special ceremony at the US Capitol and a tribute from President Donald Trump.
Sen. Darline Graham — the late South Carolina senator’s sister who was appointed to serve out the rest of the term — announced Tuesday that the events will take place in Washington, DC, on July 28 and in South Carolina on July 29.
Graham died earlier this month at the age of 71 from a tear in his artery, or aortic dissection, according to a preliminary finding from the Washington, DC, medical examiner.
Funeral plans over two days
The first day of services will begin at the US Capitol and will honor Graham’s military and political career. An Armed Forces Body Bearer Team will carry his remains into the Capitol to mark his service in the Air Force. Inside, the team will be replaced by a US Capitol Police memorial guard to represent his time as a US senator.
A special ceremony at the Capitol Rotunda will follow, Senate Majority Leader John Thune said.
“For so many of us in the Senate and the House, myself included, Lindsey was more than a colleague, he was a friend,” Thune said in a statement. “From the military to state politics to decades of representing South Carolinians in Congress, Lindsey dedicated his life to giving back through public service. As we say our final goodbyes, it seems fitting for his friends and colleagues to give back to him through this special Capitol honor.”
Graham’s remains will then be taken to the Washington National Cathedral for a funeral service at 2 p.m. ET, where Trump is scheduled to pay tribute.
The late senator was once a Trump critic but eventually grew to become one of the president’s closest allies on Capitol Hill.
“What a terrible loss it is,” Trump told CNN’s Jake Tapper following Graham’s death. “He’s a great politician. He was a natural. Very few of them. He was a natural politician. Got along with everybody.”
Following the service, Graham’s remains will be taken to South Carolina for a funeral in Columbia the next day.
The events on July 29 will begin with a procession at the state house with the South Carolina State Guard caisson detachment carrying his remains.
It will feature a F-16 flyover before his remains are carried to the First Baptist Church of Columbia.
The two days of services will conclude with a private burial in Pickens County.
Graham never married nor had children. He helped raise his sister, Darline Graham, after their parents’ death and later adopted her.
Darline Graham, whose appointment runs until January 2027, said Monday that she will run for a full Senate term this November. Trump previously urged her to run for her late brother’s seat, pledging his “complete and total endorsement” if she enters the race.
The-CNN-Wire
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