WASHINGTON (AP) — He felt stung by the politics that helped define his life — and resolved to keep a distance. But in death, the Rev. Billy Graham is getting a rare tribute from the nation’s top political leaders under Capitol Rotunda.
President Donald Trump, House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell are expected today to remember “America’s pastor,” who died a week earlier at age 99. Some 30 family members will accompany Graham’s casket to Washington, where he befriended presidents of both parties and counseled others over seven decades.
Graham is lying in honor beneath the iconic dome today and Thursday, before a funeral Friday near his home in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Though he met every president since Harry Truman and counseled most, Graham grew wary of politics after Watergate. He was closest to Richard Nixon but later said he felt used by him.
Nonetheless, Graham ministered to other presidents until his health began to fail about 10 years ago.
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