Sen. Lindsey Graham went on a rant about Nazis and Winston Churchill when asked about President Donald Trump’s recent controversial comments on Americans’ finances.
Earlier this week, Trump said “I don’t think about American financial situation,” despite the war in Iran causing a spike in inflation largely due to an increase in gas prices.
“I don’t think about anybody. I think about one thing: we cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon, that’s all,” he added.
But Graham, a longtime military hawk on Iran, told NBC’s Kristen Welker this was Trump’s “Churchill moment” during an appearance on Meet The Press.
“When Churchill came into power, he promised blood, sweat, toll, heartache until we deal with the Nazis, who are an existential threat to the British way of life,” he said. “And if Hitler had taken charge of the planet, it would have been the darkest hour in humanity.”
Inflation has shot up ever since the war in Iran began. On Tuesday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics found that inflation rose by 0.6 percent, with gas increasing 5.4 percent in the month of April.
Polling shows Americans blame Trump for the rise in gas prices, which rose after the Iranian regime closed the Strait of Hormuz, where a fifth of the world’s energy passes.
Graham echoed Trump’s sentiment about Iran.
“Do I worry about gas prices? Yes, but President Trump’s right,” he said. “The biggest threat to disability in the world is a nuclear-armed Iran, and whatever price we have to pay, we will pay.”
The South Carolina Republican began as a critic of Trump when he first ran for president in 2015, calling him “a jackass.” But since then, Graham has become one of Trump’s most reliable allies in the Senate, morphing from a bipartisan dealmaker to a bomb thrower.
“What did Churchill say? Whatever price we have to pay to beat Hitler, we will pay,” he said. “Same with Iran.”
Graham said that the United States was “inside the 10-yard line” with the war in Iran.
“I think if we go back to military activity, weaken them further, then we can end this thing pretty soon,” he said.
The president announced a ceasefire with Iran last month after continued saber-rattling and threatening to bomb bridges and energy infrastructure. But negotiations with the Iranian regime have stalled.
The war also carries serious implications for Republicans’ ability to hold onto their fragile majority in the House of Representatives and even in the Senate.
But Graham said that he was willing to give up his job to stop Iran from having a nuclear weapon.
“It’s worth losing my job,” he said. “If I had to give my job up to make sure Iran would never have a nuclear weapon, I would do it.”
Graham added that the best thing he can do in his job is to keep Americans safe.
“You don’t have to agree with me, but I’ve been this way for 20 years,” he said. “But here’s the good news: gas prices will come down when you put Iran in a box. Saudi Israel peace will become possible when you put Iran in a box. The upside of dealing with Iran is enormously good, but you got to deal with them.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson also admitted that the Strait of Hormuz and gas prices bedevilled Republicans.
“Gas prices are too high because of that, and that has an effect on how goods are transported to the grocery store,” he said. “As soon as we get that straightened out, we will get back to the kitchen table issues, the economic issues that we put in place to make the economy grow.”
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