Doug Bandow, a former Special Assistant to President Ronald Reagan and current fellow at the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank long associated with non-interventionist foreign policy, has published a scathing assessment of the late Senator Lindsey Graham's foreign policy legacy, arguing that the South Carolina Republican's death has improved global security.

Writing in The American Conservative, Bandow contended that Graham's departure from the political stage could create an opening for President Donald Trump to realign U.S. foreign policy.

"His death has made America and the world a safer place," Bandow wrote. "Indeed, freed from Graham's stream of malign and belligerent whispers, perhaps President Trump will return to his campaign commitment to put America first and end Washington's string of reckless and endless wars."

Bandow accused Graham of "constantly sacrificed American interests to win the favor of an unsavory mix of foreign agents, democratic hacks, clever manipulators, and brutal dictators." He described the senator as "an unusually effective warmonger" who, following the 2018 death of Senator John McCain (R-AZ), assumed the role of informal leader of what Bandow called "Washington's notorious bipartisan war party." Graham, a senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, had for years been one of the most prominent Republican voices shaping the chamber's approach to national security and defense spending.

"Graham was never happier than when plotting another crusade for Americans to fight," Bandow continued. "His bloodlust was on constant display. He was most ebullient when palling around with foreign leaders responsible for the deaths of thousands, or better yet, tens of thousands of foreigners, usually civilians."

Bandow criticized Graham's support for military engagement in Central Asia, saying the senator was content "sacrificing so many young Americans to bring 'democracy'" to the region while seeking to establish a more permanent American presence. He also condemned Graham's backing of Saudi Arabia's military campaign in Yemen, which Bandow characterized as "murderous aggression launched to turn that nation into a de facto royal colony."

According to Bandow, Graham "reclaimed his membership in the 'MbS fan club'" even after the grotesque murder and dismemberment of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Noting that Graham served as an Air Force JAG officer but "never came close to combat," Bandow argued that the senator "smoothly shifted to permanent groveling — intentionally, knowingly, convincingly, shamelessly — once Trump took power." He pointed to Graham's reported emotional reaction to the U.S. attack on Iran as emblematic of what he called "his most malign role."

"His last major foreign policy initiative was to push an illegal, immoral war of aggression," Bandow wrote. "Some consequences: Americans killed, U.S. bases devastated, American wealth wasted, Gulf partners damaged, oil markets wrecked, and a shaken global economy. For all that trouble, Iran's power over the energy trade has been enhanced and its need for nuclear weapons has been made plain. Heckuva job, Lindsey!"

Bandow concluded by acknowledging that Graham's "passing is a personal tragedy" while maintaining that "his departure from the halls of power should be welcomed."