Haley Barbour reflects on long-time friendship with leader and businessman
When someone like Lanny Griffith passes on, it takes a while to find the right words. He was a friend to many, including me, and someone I respected as much as I enjoyed being around. We worked together for decades, but I knew him even before all that—as a young man from Corinth, Mississippi, with big ideas and a sharp sense of humor.
Lanny and I first crossed paths at Ole Miss in 1969, back when to be a Republican in Mississippi, you had to be an optimist. We were part of the College Republicans, trying to build something out of nothing. That kind of work takes belief, persistence, and the ability to bring people together—traits Lanny had in spades. Over the years, we would go on to run campaigns, advise presidents, and start a business together, but those early days shaped us.
In 1982, I ran for the U.S. Senate against Senator John Stennis. I didn’t win, but I knew the race mattered. I also knew I needed someone who could run a disciplined campaign. I called Lanny. He stepped in without fanfare and ran a smart, steady effort. He told me he could have won if he’d had a good candidate. That was Lanny, always finding the humor in challenging circumstances.
When I left the White House after a stint in the Reagan administration and started learning the ropes in the private sector, I opened a little office in the Watergate. Not long after, Ed Rogers and I started the firm that would become BGR Group. When I was elected Chairman of the RNC in 1993, Ed brought in Lanny to help run the shop while I was focused on the political side. The three of us built BGR like a family business—not just in how we worked, but in how we treated people. In more than 30 years together, we never had an argument about money. That’s not because we saw everything the same way—it’s because we trusted each other.
Lanny was always in the center of the action and unusually generous with his time. If you walked into his office, he made you feel like you belonged there. He didn’t play up his resume, even though it was long: Special Assistant to the President, Assistant Secretary of Education, campaign manager, coalition builder, CEO. He focused on what needed to be done, and he did it without drama.
He was also a proud son of Mississippi. No matter how long he lived in Washington, Corinth stayed with him. He worked hard to give back to his hometown—restoring buildings, supporting local foundations, and staying involved with the people and places that meant something to him. That wasn’t for show. That was just Lanny.
To Susan, Sally, and the rest of Lanny’s family—thank you for sharing him with so many of us. I’m proud to have counted myself as one of his many, many friends. He made a difference in this world, and not just in the big ways. Lanny made people feel seen, heard, and respected. That’s the kind of legacy that lasts.
We’ll miss him. I already do.
Haley Barbour was Governor of Mississippi from 2005–2012.