Sen. Lindsey Graham's (R-S.C.) close alliance with former President Donald Trump has long been something of a puzzle, especially when Graham announced early Jan. 7 that after the siege of the Capitol by pro-Trump rioters, he was done with Trump — and then quickly went back to hanging out with Trump and defending him. Graham told Axios' Jonathan Swan in an interview broadcast Sunday that his rekindled relationship with Trump is a mixture of friendship and ideological pragmatism, but not political expediency.
When Swan asked if Graham could have won re-election in November without being a big Trump booster, Graham noted that since he already won, "I could throw him over tomorrow. Why aren't I?" Right, Swan said, "that's what I really don't understand." Graham said Swan doesn't understand him very much, and Swan agreed. "I don't. That's why I'm asking you."
"I could say, you know, that's it, it's over, it's done," Graham said, not conceding that he did say that exactly two months earlier. "That's just too easy." It's harder to take the flawed leader of a movement he thinks is "good for the country" and "see if we can make a go of it," Graham said. "Mitt Romney didn't do it, John McCain didn't do it, there's something about Trump. There's a dark side and there's some magic there. And what I'm trying to do is just harness the magic. To me, Donald Trump is sort of a cross between Jesse Helms, Ronald Reagan, and P.T. Barnum." Swan laughed at the evident compliment.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Trump "could make the Republican Party something that nobody else I know can make it," Graham said. "He can make it bigger. He can make it stronger. He can make it more diverse. And he also could destroy it."
-
Marisa Silver’s 6 favorite books that capture a lifetimeFeature The author recommends works by John Williams, Ian McEwan, and more
-
Book reviews: ‘We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution’ and ‘Will There Ever Be Another You’Feature The many attempts to amend the U.S. Constitution and Patricia Lockwood’s struggle with long Covid
-
Philadelphia’s Calder GardensFeature A permanent new museum
-
Japan poised to get first woman prime ministerSpeed Read The ruling Liberal Democratic Party elected former Economic Security Minister Sanae Takaichi
-
Israel and Hamas meet on hostages, Trump’s planSpeed Read Hamas accepted the general terms of Trump’s 20-point plan, including the release of all remaining hostages
-
US tipped to help Kyiv strike Russian energy sitesSpeed Read Trump has approved providing Ukraine with intelligence for missile strikes on Russian energy infrastructure
-
Netanyahu agrees to Trump’s new Gaza peace planSpeed Read At President Trump's meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, they agreed upon a plan to end Israel’s war in Gaza
-
Russia is ‘helping China’ prepare for an invasion of TaiwanIn the Spotlight Russia is reportedly allowing China access to military training
-
Moldova gives decisive win to pro-EU partySpeed Read The country is now on track to join the European Union within five years
-
Interpol arrests hundreds in Africa-wide sextortion crackdownIN THE SPOTLIGHT A series of stings disrupts major cybercrime operations as law enforcement estimates millions in losses from schemes designed to prey on lonely users
-
UK, 3 Western allies recognize Palestinian stateSpeed Read Britain, Canada, Australia and Portugal formally recognized the state of Palestine
