Darline Graham roasted by Dems over ‘incredibly stupid’ healthcare argument

National PoliticsSen. Darline Graham, R-S.C., gives a speech to supporters after winning a special Republican primary runoff to replace her brother, the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., in the November general election, Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Meg Kinnard)AP Photo/Meg KinnardBy Howard Koplowitz | hkoplowitz@al.comSen. Darline Graham, R-S.C., is being mocked online after she invoked the early deaths of her hard-working parents to argue against “government-run healthcare.”Graham, who defeated Rep. Ralph Norman by 5 percentage points in Tuesday night’s special primary runoff, ripped her general election opponent for endorsing “bad idea after bad idea,” including a public option for healthcare.“I have a different background and vision for our state” than Democrat Annie Andrews, the senator argued in her victory speech.“I’m a hard worker with a servant’s heart. I grew up in the back of a bar and liquor store in one room in central South Carolina. My parents worked long, hard hours to make ends meet. We didn’t take vacations. If they were sick, they had to get up and go to work, because if the doors weren’t open we weren’t making money. My mother passed away when I was 11 and my father just over a year later.”Democrats skewered Graham for her “incredibly stupid” argument.“She complaining [sic] about the Democrat who wants everyone to have health care... while explaining how her parents died young because they couldn’t see doctors,” posted Jeopardy! champion Hemant Mehta on X. “Sounds like a reason to vote for Dr. Annie Andrews.”Brett Meiselas, co-founder of the anti-Trump media outlet MeidasTouch, said of Graham’s comments: “this is the craziest argument against universal health care i have ever heard.”Liberal influencer and podcaster Brian Tyler Cohen also piled on.“The Republican healthcare plan: Work nonstop and die before your kids reach high school,” he tweeted.Democratic influencer Alex Cole called Graham a “damn idiot” for her position.“Darlene Graham: My parents struggled terribly. Also Darlene Graham: And I intend to preserve that proud American tradition. She really is a damn idiot,” Cole posted. The popular X account Spiro’s Ghost reacted sharply to Graham’s remarks.“Holy f---. Is she f------ insane? What an incredibly stupid point to make on all counts,” the account posted.Rep. Maxwell Frost, D-Fla., alluded to the hypocrisy of Graham seeking public office with her views on healthcare.“If you’re a US Senator, you’ll have government provided healthcare,” Frost tweeted.Amy McGrath, a former Marine fighter pilot and three-time Democratic political candidate in Kentucky, blasted Graham.“I’m not sure that’s the winning message she thinks it is,” McGrath posted.John Collins, who has nearly 220,000 followers on X, took the criticism a step further.“This might be the worst messaging I’ve ever seen,” he posted.“So Darlene Graham’s healthcare position is work hard, die young?” added progressive activist Melanie D’Arrigo.Howard Koplowitz is AL.com's Breaking & Trending Reporter for afternoons and nights. He has been with AL.com since 2015 and has served in a variety of roles, ranging from coverage of Donald Trump's first...