Sen. Lindsey Graham calls for up to 7,000 American troops in Syria to take down Assad

Lindsey Graham.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) called Friday for between 5,000 and 7,000 American ground troops to be moved to Syria in an effort to take down the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

While the United States struck a Syrian airforce base on Thursday, the attack was, according to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), a one-off in response to an illegal use of chemical weapons earlier this week. But Graham warned that if Assad remains in power it "will ensure the war never ends," reported BuzzFeed News' Paul McLeod. On Thursday, Graham and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) released a joint statement praising the strike.

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Jeva Lange

Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.