“It is not the least ironic that Lindsey Graham should pass away at a time the country is celebrating its 250th anniversary. Graham represented the genocidal impulse that has stained American history. As Americans we do not like discussing the fact that the country’s beginning and early roots are embedded in one of the most thorough genocidal campaigns in human history: the evisceration of 500 indigenous tribes. It is a history that remains undiscussed, and because it is undiscussed it does not generate the kind of national shame that would prevent it from never being repeated, neither here, nor abroad.

Hence, Lindsey Graham and his ilk could openly and proudly support the Israeli genocide in Gaza, encourage the same in Lebanon, and hope that President Trump’s bluster about destroying the entirety of Iranian civilization was actual American policy. Graham, like many American politicians, was a mass murderer who thought nothing of the sanctity of human life. There is no American exceptionalism in this regard, however, here we are discussing Graham.

For him, the operative example of what American policy should be against Israel’s enemies (he was an unrepentant Israel-first politician) was the firebombing of Tokyo. That American operation killed over 100,000 Japanese civilians in a single night, and burned the entire city to the ground in a massive firestorm. That such an operation would serve as a policy precedent for Graham tells us all we need to know about his mentality.

Certainly, the country as a whole has made tremendous strides since the days of chattel slavery and the so-called Indian Wars. This is especially true at the grassroots level. It would be hoped that Graham represents a dying breed of American politician, however, the fact that our Congress remains replete with Lindsey Grahams does not augur well for the immediate future of the Republic. The further fact that hundreds of hooded white racists can march unchallenged through the streets of our nation’s capitol; that states eagerly redraw electoral maps that effectively disenfranchise millions of African American voters, shows that for many, both here and abroad, the country remains closer to an American nightmare as it does to the American dream.

© July 12, 2026

Photo image: Native corpses in the aftermath of the Wounded Knee massacre.