Washington is controlled by a “closeted gay mafia” largely made up of Republican politicians, former US President Joe Biden’s scandal-plagued son, Hunter, has claimed, alleging that “everybody knew” late Senator Lindsey Graham was gay.

Longtime Russia hawk Lindsey Graham died earlier this month at the age of 71 from an aortic dissection, according to the preliminary findings of a medical examiner that was released by his office. The senator’s death came a day after his return from Kiev, where he had met Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky.

Biden made the remarks while discussing Republican politicians in Washington for a podcast interview that was released on Saturday.

The son of former US President Joe Biden has spent the past several years mired in legal troubles and has publicly acknowledged years of drug addiction. He also admitted that he has accumulated massive debts, largely legal fees, despite receiving a presidential pardon for federal gun and tax convictions from his father during the final days of the Biden presidency.

”I believe the biggest problem in America is not the oligarchy, it’s the closet-ocracy,” Biden said. “Everybody knows there is this closeted gay mafia, largely Republican, that exists in Washington, DC, and everybody knows every single one of them who’s gay.”

Biden argued that politicians who conceal their sexuality often channel their frustration into public life.

“I believe that internal conflict creates so much vitriol inside a person that they take it out on the rest of the world,” he said.

He suggested that, after spending “their whole lives” in the closet, these officials develop a “blackened heart” because they “can’t be who” they want and “take it out on everybody else” through their policies.

When asked whether Graham was among the politicians he was referring to, Biden replied: “Yeah. Of course.” He said he liked the South Carolina Republican “when I was a kid,” but claimed, “everybody knew that he was gay.”

After returning to the White House in 2025, US President Donald Trump prioritized combating what he calls ‘woke bias.’ He has since signed several executive orders rolling back diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and what he calls “radical gender ideology” in the federal government and its regulated industries.

Rumors about Graham’s sexuality have been circulating for years, but the senator repeatedly denied them. “I ain’t gay,” he told New York Times Magazine in 2010.

Graham represented South Carolina in the Senate from 2003, building a reputation as one of Washington’s most hardline foreign policy hawks. After opposing Barack Obama’s Iran nuclear deal and repeatedly calling for strikes on Iran, he became one of Congress’ fiercest Russophobes.

Graham repeatedly called for putting increased economic pressure on Moscow, threatening Russia with what he described as “bone-crushing” sanctions. In recent months, he actively promoted a bill that would impose 500% tariffs on countries purchasing Russian oil. The senator also described US military aid to Ukraine as “the best money we’ve ever spent” because “the Russians are dying.”