Former Rep. David Jolly (R-Fla.) said Monday that a trip to Saudi Arabia showed him how Sen. Lindsey Graham (RS.C.) would do whatever it takes to safeguard his political future, including supporting Donald Trump. despite his initial criticism of the then-reality TV personality before the 2016 election.
“I was with Lindsey in Saudi Arabia, and in a meeting with the King, Lindsey Graham said to the King of Saudi Arabia, ‘Don’t worry about Donald Trump. Presidents come and go, but senators stay forever,” Jolly, who left the GOP in 2018, told MSNBC’s “The Beat.”
“That little vignette told me a lot about Lindsey Graham,” the former lawmaker continued. “Someone who is probably considering expiring in the United States Senate rather than retiring. And so he compromised and sacrificed his own dignity and his own political coherence to try to follow the path of power, to stay in the Senate American.
Graham, who Trump supporters booed and called a “traitor” at the ex-POTUS’ 2024 campaign rally in South Carolina over the weekend, is “iconic” of the GOP, Jolly said.
Trump has an “iron grip” on the party, he added. “It’s post-ideological. It’s a grievance. Call it populism if you want. The party decided to look past all of Donald Trump’s flaws. He’s their guy.
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