Commentary by Stephen Macaulay
After the untimely demise of Lindsey Graham many commentators took the opportunity to question why the South Carolina senator went from being a critic of Donald Trump (e.g., “the most flawed nominee in the history of the Republican party”) to, for all intents and purposes, a Trump toady. There was a metaphysical certainty that there was a serious rolling in a grave at the US Naval Academy Cemetery, where Graham’s friend John McCain was laid to rest.
Clips were shown and cited of Graham basically explaining that he decided to cozy up to Trump with the intention of being able to influence the man.
Who can imagine that a former JAG attorney could have been so naïve?
On September 18, 2026 — yes, but a few weeks ago — Donald Trump signed the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026.
The bill includes a number of measures to penalize Russia for its attack on Ukraine.
Despite other questionable positions, there was one thing Graham was stalwart about: the right of Ukraine to exist without Russia taking whatever land it wished.
One of the measures in the bill is presidential authority to impose tariffs of 100% on major global purchasers of Russian crude oil and natural gas. Tariffs — those things Trump is so fond of, not only as a means to accumulate money but a tool he can use to punish those countries he thinks have in some way “ripped us off.”
And yet on October 9 — yes, but a few days ago and so a few weeks after signing the bill — Donald Trump announced on his social media platform: “Russia will immediately supply over 300,000 Tons of Diesel Fuel to the American and Global Marketplace, and another 500,000 Tons during the month of November, and 1,000,000 Tons immediately thereafter.”
Where are the punishing tariffs?
Now don’t imagine that Vladmir Putin is going to be supplying those Tons out of the goodness of his heart. There will certainly be a financial transaction involved.
The sort of thing that the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 was meant to stop. Money going into Russia is money that will be used for military personnel and munitions that will be used against Ukraine.
That’s right: Donald Trump is underwriting the Russian military efforts.
But what did Donald Trump say about Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy on October 10?
“He wants to make problems for the world. He wants to make problems for our farmers, our ranchers with diesel fuel, because Russia supplies a large portion of diesel fuel around the world.”
A primary objective of the Graham Act is to keep Russia from supplying a large portion of diesel fuel around the world.
Zelenskyy knows that Russian diesel sales can be lucrative, so the Ukrainian forces are understandably — well, understandably for most people who understand things like “tons” not being a proper noun -- targeting refineries. Take out a revenue source.
What does Trump say about that in relation to the Ukrainian president?
“He better damn well stop.”
Whose side is Trump on? That of a democracy or an authoritarian regime that attacked Ukraine?
A few days before that social post, at a campaign rally in Nebraska, Trump defended his administration’s actions in Iran, actions that are arguably making problems “for our farmers, our ranchers with diesel fuel.”
The US economy absorbed the disruption of Russian fuel supplies a couple years ago.
But the constraints caused by one-fifth of global oil shipments not getting shipped with anywhere near the volume they had been prior to the US and Israeli attack on Iran is something that continues to roil the US and global economies.
This is on Trump, not on Zelenskyy. He is the one who started the disruption that is causing so much trouble in terms of supplies not only of diesel, but of gasoline, jet fuel, heating oil, fertilizer, and more. Zelenskyy is defending is country.
During that presentation Trump said of Iran: “They can take out a city. Let them take, let them out Los Angeles; let them take out San Diego.”
That’s right: the president of the United States saying that a foreign adversary can wipe out American cities.
And one of those two cities happens to be the home of Naval Base Coronado, the physically largest US naval base in the country. How does this square with his alleged report of the brave women and men who are defending this country?
How this isn’t a cause for serious senators (oh, we miss you John McCain) to rise up and condemn Trump for saying that is beyond understanding. How Americans of all political alliance accept this as just another one of the things that Trump says is unthinkable.
But while that is outrageous rhetoric, the securing of Russian diesel, a move that is undoubtedly calculated to help him save face in the midterm elections, is a physical act that will result in the deaths of more Ukrainian children, women and men.
Shame.
Clearly Lindsey Graham didn’t recognize what a non-principled man he was oh-so obsequious to.
Macaulay is pundit-at-large for The Hustings.
-30-