Graham — an institutionalist turned Trump loyalist — will play a central role in Supreme Court battle

Four-and-a-half years ago, Sen. Lindsey O. Graham sat across a conference table from his colleagues and issued them a dare.

“I want you to use my words against me,” said Graham, a South Carolina Republican with a flair for drama. Pointing with his index finger, Graham continued: “If there’s a Republican president in 2016 and a vacancy occurs in the last year of the first term, you can say Lindsey Graham said let’s let the next president, whoever it might be, make that nomination.”