In the blistering summer of 2007, Sen. Lindsey Graham traveled over 6,000 miles to be with our troops.
The Iraq War was not going very well. So, President George W. Bush ordered a military “surge” of 20,000 troops to the Mideast.
And off they went, with me soon right behind them.
I was a newspaper reporter, semi-retired, living with my wife and parrot on a beautiful lake in northwest Wisconsin. God’s country.
Lying in bed early one spring morning, I looked out my window and saw a vision, while the wildlife was waking up on Young Lake.
The apparition across my mind was loud and clear: Iraq.
I was called to go to Iraq.
I embedded with the 1157th Transportation Company, Wisconsin National Guard. And there I reported on the many, many good things our troops were doing for the Iraqi people and America—despite what The New York Times was publishing.
Sen. Graham supported the surge. Nothing is perfect. The plan worked in several key ways. Thus, our troops were feeling a bit better about their war mission. So much so, many were reenlisting.
Sen. Graham, also an active-duty officer and judge advocate in the U.S. Air Force, came halfway around the world to boost their morale and further serve his beloved home of South Carolina and country at large.
The big brass from Washington, D.C. and across Iraq converged in the ancient city of Baghdad.
The “re-up” ceremony was held in the enormous and opulent Al-Faw Palace, built by the Iraqi sadists and president Saddam Hussein in the 1990s.
He moved out and was captured in 2003 during Operation Red Dawn
The joyous reenlistment ceremony Sen. Graham graciously attended was held on a beautiful clear day on July 4, 2007. The jeweled palace was packed.
Sen. Graham took the stage and gave a heart-felt address to the troops and dignitaries—and a gesture to a lowly embed reporter. Gracious as always. He was that kind of guy.
Sen. Graham’s passing last Saturday was a sad day in America.
His colleagues in Congress, both friend and foe, to the millions of Americans, both supporters and opponents, will miss this gracious and loving man.
And I will always remember him for taking a thoughtful moment in a faraway land to acknowledge my calling.
He was just that kind of man.
Rest in peace, Lindsey.
Wayne Anderson is a resident of the Village of Tamarind Grove.