Posted on 03/08/2016 12:32:28 AM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
Republicans should have expelled Donald Trump from the Republican Party, Lindsey Graham said Monday.
The former presidential candidate told CNN's Wolf Blitzer that the New York billionaire's rhetoric toward immigrants has exacerbated the problem the GOP had with Hispanics in 2012.
"He took our problems in 2012 with Hispanics and made them far worse by espousing forced deportation," Graham said. "Looking back, we should have basically kicked him out of the party."
Asked how that would be done, the South Carolina senator suggested Republicans could have united against him like many are doing now.
"The more you know about Donald Trump, the less likely you are to vote for him. The more you know about his business enterprises, the less successful he looks. The more you know about his political giving, the less Republican he looks," Graham said. "We should have done this months ago."
Graham added that the Trump train is leaking oil. "I think this whole assault on his credentials of being a successful businessman and being a true Republican conservative is beginning to work," he said.
Trump has dominated the Republican primary thus far, including in South Carolina last month, besting his nearest competitor by 10 percentage points. Graham acknowledged that Trump's message is resonating with angry voters but insisted he would rather the party lose without Trump than try to win with him.
"This is not about who we nominate anymore as Republicans as much as it's who we are. This is a fight for the heart and soul of the Republican Party," Graham said. "What is conservatism? If it's Donald Trump carrying the conservative banner I think not only do we lose the election, but we'll be unable in the future to grow the conservative cause."
Graham refused to say what he would do if Trump won the Republican nomination and faced Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton in the general election but advocated for anybody but Trump, a list that includes Texas Sen. Ted Cruz. "As much as I disagree with Ted Cruz, if it came down to Donald Trump and Ted Cruz, I would be firmly in Ted's camp because I think he really is a conservative," he said.
Graham attributed Trump's dominance to the crowded GOP field's reluctance to attack him early but maintained voters are now starting to see the real-estate mogul differently after rival candidates have begun exposing his flaws.
"How many of these guys when there were 17 of us basically hid in a corner?" Graham asked. "They didn't wanna, you know, poke the guy. They didn't wanna get people mad. Ted Cruz was running as his best friend."
"Any time you leave a bad idea or a dangerous idea alone," he warned, "any time you ignore what could become an evil force, you wind up regretting it."
You first, Aunt Fancy.
what next, forced incarceration for crimes?
If the government had enforced our borders, there wouldn't be a problem with "Hispanics" today. All those living in th eUS would be here leagally. They would not be the cause of many problems in the US today.
LOL!!!
Lindsey Graham’s histrionics over Donald Trump and Ted Cruz is due to his ox being gored, his pocketbook, his influence, his bank account.....along with same for his fellow travelers in Congress. See the passion, the hatred, the fear from this man and you see the GOPe.
quote “The more you know about Donald Trump, the less likely you are to vote for him”
I think he meant to say this about himself.
Aww... Poor lil Lindsey is still butt hurt from Trump posting their cell phone number early in the campaign, when Lil Lindsey was bitching about Donald Trump.
It’s funny how he had no problem with Trump when Trump was writing checks for his campaign.
The says it all about the entire establishment Republican Party and the GOP, its leaders and pundits. They'd rather lose the election than allow an outsider become their leader. IOW, they don't give a sh!t about what voters want. If they don't get their way, they'll just take that second-tier appeasement and lesser power for themselves and live with it. Screw all those pesky voters out there.
Look for Graham, McCain, McConnell et al to start thinking about those pink parachutes and checking out with their cash in the next few years. Every damned one of them has gotten filthy rich supposedly 'serving' us.
Mr. Graham, I'll see your party burn to the ground before I ever vote for another Republican even remotely like you.
Yes! The more I hear from Trump, the more I know I am hearing a true American USA patriot.
Limbaugh eats dinner with lots of people. It doesn’t mean they influenced him. He is also a billionaire.
Along with their settling, millions of citizens of this country suffer and wait for them to do their “expletive” job! They are there to serve the PEOPLE, not themselves!
He does well when we all suffer. Not a fan any longer.
He does well when we all suffer. Not a fan any longer.
Liars. Even in California, ‘Hispanics’ voted to end bi lingual education, curtail all benefits for illegals, required schools to report illegals, etc.
It is a delusional fiction that those most preyed on by illegal alien run drug cartels and human traffickers would somehow punish Republicans for protecting them and their families.
Lilliputians try to up-tie Gulliver. Oozing smarmalots! Lindsey, chief among the covetous-envinacious sniv’lers, tries to elevate self above lugubrious Romney’s tradgicomedic dopery.
Second thought...
Lindsey has a thing for Mitt, and wants to ...uh.... position himself, should Mitt become, by some miracle, top man in the GOP.
Yep!
I wish we could kick Graham out of the Senate........
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.