RIDGELAND, Miss.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun 10, 2026--
C Spire today announced it has been named Arctic Wolf’s 2026 Southeast Partner of the Year. The award recognizes the company’s leadership in helping organizations strengthen security operations and defend against modern, AI‑driven threats by delivering trusted security outcomes through Arctic Wolf solutions.
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“Being named Arctic Wolf’s 2026 Southeast Partner of the Year is a tremendous honor and a direct reflection of the talent, dedication, and customer-inspired mindset of our business technology team,” said Brad Carpenter, C Spire’s Chief Operating Officer and EVP of Business Technology. “At C Spire, we pair world-class technology solutions with the people who truly understand our customers and the challenges they face every day. This award reinforces our commitment to helping businesses stay protected and better serve their customers and communities.”
As attackers increasingly leverage AI to move faster, scale attacks, and exploit gaps across the attack surface, organizations are under pressure to adopt AI in security operations—without adding complexity or risk. C Spire was recognized for its ability to help joint customers operationalize security in a way that is designed to be reliable, validated, and aligned to today’s security needs.
C Spire’s Business Technology unit has been recognized by industry leaders for excellence in cybersecurity, customer experience, and technology innovation. Its certified IT experts serve customers in 49 states, delivering solutions ranging from business internet and fiber to cloud connectivity, voice systems, managed Wi-Fi, and data protection — giving organizations the infrastructure and expertise they need to grow with confidence.
“These partners represent the best of the Arctic Wolf ecosystem,” said Will Briggs, Senior Vice President, Global Channels, Arctic Wolf. “They share our commitment to delivering security outcomes customers rely on. Together, we’re helping organizations defend at machine speed—while ensuring AI is applied in a way that is validated, governed, and effective in real-world environments.”
The Arctic Wolf Partner of the Year Awards recognize top-performing partners that demonstrate excellence in security expertise, customer outcomes, and strategic alignment. Award recipients are selected based on their ability to help organizations navigate an increasingly complex threat landscape, reduce operational burden on security teams, and achieve stronger, more resilient security outcomes.
As organizations worldwide face accelerated threats and an ongoing cybersecurity talent shortage, more than 10,000 organizations globally rely on Arctic Wolf to help end cyber risk. Arctic Wolf solutions are powered by the Aurora® Superintelligence Platform, a cybersecurity platform built for the AI era. The platform combines agentic AI, security expertise, and rigorous validation to deliver trustworthy outcomes across security operations. Each week, the platform processes more than nine trillion security events, transforming massive volumes of telemetry into prioritized, actionable outcomes that help organizations respond faster and operate with greater confidence.
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About C Spire
C Spire is a privately held advanced technology company that delivers customer-inspired solutions, transforming how people and businesses connect, live and work. Based in Ridgeland, the company is the largest privately held wireless carrier in the United States, a leading fiber internet provider across Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee, and a technology solutions partner serving businesses across 49 states. Additional company news and announcements are available at C Spire Newsroom.
C Spire Named 2026 Southeast Partner of the Year by Arctic Wolf
WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Lindsey Graham, one of President Donald Trump's closest allies in Congress who traveled the globe to advocate for a more aggressive U.S. foreign policy, has died after a “brief and sudden illness,” his office said. He was 71.
The statement posted on social media early Sunday said his family “appreciates prayers at this time and asks for privacy during this incredibly difficult period.” It did not provide any additional details about the circumstances surrounding the Saturday night death of the prominent South Carolina Republican, a former Air Force lawyer who served in Congress for three decades.
Trump, who talked to Graham frequently, said he was “like a member of the family. It’s very tough.” He said on NBC’s ”Meet the Press" that Graham had called him on Saturday night after returning from a trip to Ukraine and “sounded a little bit tired, but perfect.” The president ordered that flags across the country be flown at half-staff until Saturday evening.
A noted hawk, Graham was one of the most influential figures in Washington on foreign affairs and he advised Trump on matters such as the Iran war and Russia. On Friday, Graham had announced an agreement with the Trump administration to move forward on a package of Russia sanctions.
As chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, Graham also had a central role during Trump’s second term as Republicans pushed major legislation on party-line votes while holding a narrow 53-47 majority in the chamber.
Under South Carolina law, Republican Gov. Henry McMaster will appoint a temporary replacement for Graham, who was seeking a fifth term in November. A new nominee will be selected in a special primary, which is required to be held within weeks of a vacancy. The winner of November's general election will start a full six-year term in January.
Graham, elected to the Senate in 2002 after serving in the House, long promoted a policy of robust U.S. military interventionism and strong national defense that in later years would put him at odds with the growing isolationist wing of his party.
Over time, Graham became well-known for his close ties with Trump, whom the senator briefly ran against for the presidential nomination in 2016.
Their relationship would begin on a rough note, with Graham calling the then-New York businessman “unfit for office.” Graham used a profanity to describe Trump after Trump made disparaging comments about Arizona Republican John McCain, Graham's best friend in the Senate and a Vietnam War veteran. McCain and Graham, along with Sen. Joe Lieberman, I-Conn., were known as the “Three Amigos” and frequently traveled together to promote their foreign policy views around the globe.
During a campaign rally in South Carolina, Trump read out Graham’s personal cellphone number and continued to belittle him throughout the 2016 race as Graham made it clear he would not support Trump.
Graham, however, shifted significantly once Trump won the White House and emerged as one of Trump's top allies — speaking with him frequently and becoming a regular presence on the golf course alongside the president — even as McCain remained a critic.
In a 2018 interview with The Associated Press, Graham explained his pivot by saying McCain taught him that the country must move forward after elections and that meant “you have an obligation” to help the president. McCain ran twice for the White House.
“And I’ve tried to be helpful where I could because I think he needs all the help he can get,” Graham said of Trump. “You can be a better critic when people understand that you’re trying to help them be successful.”
Graham was a prominent defender of Trump during the president's two first-term impeachments — a reversal from Graham's role as a House prosecutor during Democratic President Bill Clinton's impeachment in 1998, when he urged senators not to make up their minds before listening to all of the arguments. Both Trump and Clinton were eventually acquitted.
Graham appeared to break with Trump after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, saying in a dramatic speech on the Senate floor that night, “Count me out. Enough is enough." But the senator soon returned to Trump's side and the two remained close during Trump's second term.
Graham had just been in Ukraine to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who said the senator visited his country 10 times during the years since Russia invaded in February 2022. “Lindsey was a true defender of freedom and the values that make our world safer,” Zelenskyy said.
He was also one of the chief backers of Trump's war in Iran, having advocated for years for direct confrontation between Washington and Tehran. Graham continued to defend Trump this summer even as many of fellow Republicans questioned a tentative June ceasefire agreement that they worried could send billions of dollars to Iran.
“I’d rather try diplomacy than take it off the table,” Graham said of Trump’s memorandum of understanding with Tehran.
Graham's travels made him a familiar face to dozens of world leaders.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Graham understood that the security of Israel and the United States was inseparable.
“Israel has lost one of its greatest friends. America has lost a great patriot. I have lost a beloved friend,” Netanyahu said.
As Budget Committee chairman, Graham helped oversee a Senate procedure that allowed Republicans to pass significant policies such as last year’s tax law without the threat of a Democratic filibuster.
He had previously led the Senate Judiciary Committee when Republicans confirmed Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court in 2020. The senator was in line to regain that gavel if the party kept its majority after the midterm elections and had pledged to confirm "as many conservative judges as possible.”
Graham was a key player in the Senate’s efforts to craft a massive immigration overhaul in 2013 as a member of a bipartisan group. The legislation passed the Senate with 68 votes but was never taken up by the House, so it did not become law.
Graham’s views on immigration, particularly an endorsement of a path to citizenship for people in the U.S. without legal status, put him at odds with some Republican factions.
Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, a Democrat who was his ally on that issue, said Graham was “part of every important policy issue and an indispensable player” in bipartisan negotiations.
Graham often worked across the aisle, even as he remained fiercely loyal to Trump. Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, a Democrat, said in a statement that “personal relationships often mattered more to him than the political disagreements of the day."
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said Graham was “over the moon” with the Russian sanctions deal announced Friday. “The last thing in the world I would have guessed was that he was sick or ill or in any way vulnerable,” Blumenthal said.
Jaime Harrison, a former national and state Democratic Party chairman who unsuccessfully ran against Graham in 2020, said that even during their “fiercest political battles” the two men "could still share a conversation, a laugh, and a mutual respect for South Carolina.”
Graham was unique in the Senate for his influence not only on Trump, but also with his fellow Republicans who were aware of his ability to sometimes move the president’s thinking. He was also known for his sense of humor, often deployed to diffuse tensions.
Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso, the second-ranking Republican, said Graham will be missed for his “quick wit and infectious laughter.”
McMaster said in a statement that Graham was “irreplaceable.” Former Republican President George W. Bush said Graham “understood how the world works” and “was a kind and funny man who loved our country and loved serving it.”
Graham often spoke about his humble roots, growing up in the back of a South Carolina bar and helping to raise his sister, Darline, after his parents died at a young age. Graham was not married and did not have children.
Graham won 57% of the GOP vote in South Carolina's primary in June and was up against Democrat Annie Andrews, a pediatrician, and several minor party and independent candidates in November.
His death will likely prompt a scramble to fill a rare open Senate seat.
A number of Republican names began circulating as possible replacements to serve out the rest of Graham’s term, including Reps. Nancy Mace and Russell Fry.
The brief statement by Graham's office did not explain the circumstances of his death, which came at a time when there has been some concern about a lack of transparency about the health of some members of Congress.
Rep. Tom Kean Jr., R-N.J., was absent without explanation for months before recently returning to Congress and disclosing he had been diagnosed with depression.
Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell, the former longtime Republican leader, was hospitalized weeks ago for undisclosed health reasons.
Kinnard reported from Columbia, S.C. Associated Press writers Chris Megerian in Washington, Bill Barrow in Atlanta, Brian P. D. Hannon in Bangkok and Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed to this report.
U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. answer media questions near damaged Russian vehicles exhibition in central Kyiv, Friday, July 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
FILE - Senators John McCain, R-Ariz., from left, Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Joseph Lieberman, I-Conn., attend a press conference, July 5, 2010 in Kabul, Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Dusan Vranic, File)
FILE - Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks as Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., listen, at a primary election night party at the South Carolina State Fairgrounds in Columbia, S.C., Feb. 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)
FILE - U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. answers questions from the media near an exhibition of damaged Russian vehicles in central Kyiv, on July 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky, File)
In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Office, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, left, and U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. in Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, July 10, 2026. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)
FILE - Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., left, gestures as President Donald Trump speaks with reporters while in flight on Air Force One, Jan. 4, 2026, as they were returning to Joint Base Andrews, Md. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
FILE - U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., gestures as he speaks to the media in Kyiv, Ukraine, March 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda, File)
