Graham worked as a lawyer in private practice before serving one term in the South Carolina House of Representatives from 1993 to 1995. He served four terms in the United States House of Representatives for South Carolina's 3rd congressional district from 1995 to 2003. In 2002, Graham won the U.S. Senate seat vacated by retiring Republican incumbent Strom Thurmond. He was reelected to a fourth term in 2020. Graham is known in the Senate for his advocacy of strong national defense and aggressive interventionist foreign policy.
Graham sought
the Republican nomination for president between June and
December 2015, dropping out before the 2016 Republican primaries began. He
was an outspoken critic of Donald Trump's 2016 candidacy and
repeatedly said he did not support Trump; in particular, he took issue
with Trump's comments on Graham's close friend, Senator John McCain. After
a March 2017 meeting with Trump, Graham became a staunch ally of his, often
issuing public statements in his defense. His reversal caught both parties by surprise
and sparked media speculation. He became chair of the Senate Judiciary
Committee in 2019. Graham led the U.S. Supreme Court confirmation hearings for Amy Coney
Barrett, who was confirmed in October 2020.
Sen. Lindsey Graham says the GOP can't move forward without Trump
WASHINGTON — Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said Thursday that the Republican Party cannot continue without former President Donald Trump.
“I would just say to my Republican colleagues: 'Can we move forward without President Trump?' The answer is no,” Graham said in an interview with Fox News' Sean Hannity.
Graham, who became a close ally of Trump during his presidency, made the remark ahead of an expected vote to oust Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., as chair of the House Republican Conference next week because of her efforts to publicly denounce Trump's lie that the 2020 presidential election was stolen.
“I've always liked Liz Cheney, but she's made a determination that the Republican Party can't grow with President Trump. I've determined we can't grow without him,” Graham told Hannity.
People are attracted to the “Trump Republican Party,” Graham said, because of economic populism and the “America first” agenda.
“If you don't get that as a Republican, you're making the biggest mistake in the history of the Republican Party,” he said. “The reason our party is growing with minorities and with working men and women is because President Trump appears to be on the side of people working really hard, appears to be on the side of opportunity not dependency, because he is.”
Graham was a fierce defender of Trump throughout his four years in office, though that came after the South Carolina Republican voiced warnings about the businessman-turned-politician during the 2016 presidential campaign. Graham also ran for the GOP nomination that year, during which time he claimed a Trump presidency would lead to another 9/11 attack.
After the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, Graham said on the Senate floor that Biden's election was legitimate and criticized Trump for his efforts to cast doubt on the outcome.
"Trump and I, we've had a hell of a journey," Graham said. "I hate it to end this way. Oh my God, I hate it. From my point of view he's been been a consequential president. But today, first thing you'll see. All I can say, is count me out, enough is enough."
Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., who has vigorously defended Trump and in recent days promoted his baseless claims of election fraud, has emerged as a possible front-runner to replace Cheney. Both Trump and House Minority Whip Steve Scalise publicly backed Stefanik on Wednesday, while House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy was heard telling "Fox and Friends" host Steve Doocy off-air ahead of a live interview Tuesday that he has "lost confidence" in Cheney.
"I've had it with her. You know, I've lost confidence," McCarthy said in the recording, which was reported by Axios and has not been obtained by NBC News. "Well, someone just has to bring a motion, but I assume that will probably take place.”
Cheney will not step down from her leadership role, her spokesman said Wednesday.
In a Washington Post op-ed article published Wednesday afternoon, Cheney argued: "While embracing or ignoring Trump’s statements might seem attractive to some for fundraising and political purposes, that approach will do profound long-term damage to our party and our country."
