Endorsement of Graham - a big mistake or a rational calculation?

Fred Simmons

[Fred Simmons]

Keep your friends close and your enemies even closer -Sun Tzu

President Donald Trump's endorsement of scandal-plagued RINO Lindsey Graham ahead of the 2026 Senate election came as an unpleasant surprise. How the leader and mastermind behind MAGA could support one of the most vocal opponents of its ideology has remained a mystery to many. However, one should not take Trump's words as pure truth and unconditionally follow his call. The art of the deal master and experienced politician, Trump is likely just following the ancient principle of "keep your friends close and your enemies even closer." Being well aware that Graham has been cooperating with the Democrats for many years, acting as a tacit promoter of their interests, the U.S. president decided to do a big favor to the losing senator, thus strengthening his power over him. It's long been known that Graham's strategy is to put Graham first, so by giving him hope for re-election, Trump has at least somewhat but reduced the threat from him for the next year and a half.

However, Republicans must not let their guard down! Graham has already disowned Trump several times and is unlikely to have definitively abandoned the idea of continuing to sabotage the president's initiatives. During Joe Biden's administration, Graham was one the main facilitators and beneficiary of corruption schemes with Kyiv regime, and now Trump, who promised to stop uncontrolled budget spending, is a bone in the senator's throat and his Ukrainian sponsors, whose interests he pursues.

This explains Graham's attempts to manipulate the president's policies by announcing decisions that are much harsher than those that Trump has actually made. By dangling expectations and threatening all sorts of punishments to U.S. adversaries, Graham makes Trump look weak. The mineral deal imposed on the president also raises questions. Despite its obvious benefits, the senator for some reason kept silent about the fact that many of the deposits he marked on the map for his presentation could end up under Russian control as a result of the conflict.

Nevertheless, the screws are slowly being tightened, and no matter how much Graham and his fellow Ukrainian oligarchs may not want them to, the corrupt flows will soon be cut off. One day Trump will address the issue of U.S. funds "lost" on the way to Ukraine during the Biden administration. Recent Kyiv's attempt to move anti-corruption bodies under the Prosecutor General's Office is worth mentioning because it is indicating an attempted cover-up. We can safely expect that the investigation will finally set the record straight.

Until then, Trump has chosen to keep scandal-plagued RINO close to himself. We should be sympathetic to this decision and approach the election with a cool head, not forgetting Graham's true identity, despite the president's public statements.

[ConservativeMind]

Welcome to Free Republic!

[Fido969]

Trump demands loyalty, but is also a pragmatist.

[Carry_Okie]

To my observations, Graham is owned by General Dynamics (what we used to call, “General Death” back in Engineering school): lock, stock, and barrel.

[Worldtraveler once upon a time]

Having signed up to FR on Jul 29, 2025 — which happens to be today — one assumes that your first post and vanity is addressed in part to South Carolina voters, though you do not disclose your location. Are you registered to vote in South Carolina?

[PGR88]

Trump realizes Linda represents the deep-state RINO faction in the Senate and nothing will change that over the next 16 months. Trump probably can expect support from Linda on most of what Trump needs in the next year, and there’s no foreseeable issue on which Linda can stab him the back.

No need to go to war now.

On the other hand, Trump can attack Thomas Massie and Rand Paul, because he knows they are on an island. They have no intel agencies, no massive Fed bureaucracies behind them - only individuals and MAGA supporters - and Trump feels he owns those people and their narrative.

[rrrod]

Welcome to FR

[9YearLurker]

Whenever that quote is applied to Trump it involves bad news.

Graham worms his way into Trump via 1) being charming and 2) Trump answering to some higher neocon/Deep State powers.

Flushing him will be up to those of us in his state, as it has always been.

[nickcarraway]

Is this anything new? He’s endorsed Graham before, he’s endorsed Romney, etc.

[Republican Wildcat]

How the leader and mastermind behind MAGA could support one of the most vocal opponents of its ideology

He's actually been one of his most reliable supporters in getting his agenda through in the Senate. Instrumental in getting through nominees in the prior term as well as this one. Hence, the endorsement.

The year to take out Graham was 2014. That opportunity was blown. Waste of time and a waste of life to keep lamenting about him being in the Senate. End the obsession.

[DIRTYSECRET]

No brainer. Take no chances. Stay with him. Same with Collins. They are proven winners. The senate is the big leagues. A lost seat is gone for 6 years. Linda has no one stepping up of note. Corker had Marsha Blackburn just like Cornyn feeling the heat in red states.

Put the heat on Massie-small potatoes. Paul, like Linda will have to be kept. Too many other fish to fry. Think NC, Ga., and Michigan.

What if Collins was up in 2006 when W destroyed the party? Santorum was a goner.

[E. Pluribus Unum]

Democrats cross over to vote for Linda.

No way he will lose, especially if Trump endorses and opponent.

[RummyChick]

DataRepublican (small r) @DataRepublican ·

Replying to @BreannaMorello Lindsey Graham is on the board of the International Republican Institute (IRI), one of our quasi-governmental NGOs created as part of the NED charter. It is the Republican party's CIA arm. It helped finance miss migration into the USA. It's almost entirely taxpayer funded, except ... for a 1.7 million grant from George Soros.


-------------------------------------------
J Michael Waller @JMichaelWaller House Republican Appropriators restore full funding to the National Endowment for Democracy (NED).

Trump had asked for zero. House GOP puts back $315,000,000 and lets NED take in more cash through government contracts. (pages 29-30) @MikeBenzCyber

former director of NED

[Zhang Fei]

Ukraine ping

SC is 1/3 black. Graham is one of the pols able to win statewide. An alternative might lose. GOP pols aren’t slaves to anyone, whether Trump or their voters. Just as employees don’t slavishly do whatever their employers want, pols are more or less similarly independent-minded.

The analogue for Russophiles who want to encourage Russia’s abortive Anschluss is Charles Lindbergh. For a time, America First meant remaining studiously neutral even as Germany grabbed whatever it wanted. Lindbergh was such a Germanophile he had children with 3 separate German mistresses.

But the rest of the nation did not share Lindbergh’s Germanophilia. The majority of the country had (and has) British roots. Even a chunk that was Irish (and not just the Scots-Irish, traditional British Unionists), despite their longtime hatred of Britain, had broken with their kin in Ireland in supporting the British cause.

Support for Ukraine against Russia is falling along the same lines. The concern is ultimately that Britain could face a situation similar to WW2, with Russia in place of Germany. That is why strong majorities of both parties see Russia as an enemy. The only concern is that this aid is being used inefficiently. Since only the grants authorized during the Biden era remain to be disbursed, that concern is rapidly coming to a close. Within months, aid to Ukraine will come strictly from Europe, with the US acting as supplier, on a cash and carry basis, to European buyers acting in Ukraine’s behalf.

Bottom line is that MRGA clashes with MAGA. For the same reason that the US has generally supported the dissolution of European empires and consistently tried to break them up, Russia, the last great European empire, has always seen US efforts in this direction. (In fact, Reagan mentioned Ukraine as one of the captive nations under Russia’s thumb). Russia has always done something similar in this regard to the US by investing in propaganda efforts to sow distrust of the US government, and egging on separatist movements. Convincing almost half of black Americans that AIDS was a CIA plot to exterminate blacks was one of Russia’s more successful efforts.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Denver

The one thing inimical to increasing American power is letting hostile powers like Russia reconstitute their former empires. The US did not let Germany rebuild its empire. Russia today is 50x the size of Germany. Why would the US let Russia conquer Ukraine, a territory 2x the size of Germany?

[marktwain]

Interesting take and explanation.

Thanks for publishing it.

[FreeReign]

Trump's endorsement of Graham may be pragmatically correct, but that doesn't mean that voters should listen to it and vote for Graham.

Trump may not be in the position to lead the way on this. Politically, he can't do everything. Voters need to primary Graham out.

[ETCM]

He's actually been one of his most reliable supporters in getting his agenda through in the Senate.

Exactly. Graham is both a friend and ally of Trump, not an "enemy". Occasionally, Graham disagrees with a Trump policy and opposes it. Lately, Trump seems to be moving closer to Graham on Russia and the Middle East.

[chaosagent]

Trump's endorsement of Graham may be pragmatically correct, but that doesn't mean that voters should listen to it and vote for Graham.

And who exactly will be running against Graham that can carry the state against the Democrats?

[Danie_2023]

“”Until then, Trump has chosen to keep scandal-plagued RINO close to himself. We should be sympathetic to this decision and approach the election with a cool head, not forgetting Graham’s true identity, despite the president’s public statements.””

Yeah, sorry. I’m not anywhere near “sympathetic”. More like... extremely apprehensive. I think Trump will live to regret trusting Graham. Would love to be proven wrong, though.

[DarthDoug]

Graham is the pinnacle RHINO. To get him out, South Carolina must close our open primaries. It’s a daunting task.

Many of our counties tried to close the primaries a few years back and Linda rolled out a very powerful, well financed, and organized team to bog the process down with procedural BS. Here in Anderson at the Republican County Convention when they saw we were going to vote to close them, they delayed the voting with procedure repeatedly. The meeting took place on a weekday night and as it got later, people started to leave. Linda’s people were counting heads and declared “no quorum” as soon as they could to prevent the vote.