(TheLibertyRevolution.com)- Lindsey Graham has been an on-again, off-again supporter of former President Donald Trump.
While the Republican senator from South Carolina has often been considered one of Trump’s staunchest supporters and allies, he has also criticized the former president on many occasions. Now, it’s becoming apparent that Graham had some really harsh words for Trump in the wake of the attacks on the U.S. Capitol building on January 6, 2021.
Graham was recorded on audio criticizing Trump for immersing himself in political theatrics. When protestors stormed the Capitol on January 6, Graham said Trump was, at the very least, partially to blame for what happened.
New York Times reporter Jonathan Martin spoke to Graham on January 6. He and fellow reporter Alexander Burns wrote a book about the whole situation and the Trump administration.
The pair appeared on CNN recently together to talk about their book. During that discussion, Martin said that Graham told him:
“[Trump’s] misjudged the passion. He plays the TV game and he went too far here. That rally didn’t help, talking about primarying [Liz Cheney]. He created a sense of revenge.”
What Graham was referring to was the rally that Trump held before the crowd marched to the Capitol building and rioted. At that rally, the then-president said:
“We got to remember, in a year from now, you’re going to start working on Congress and we got to get rid of the weak Congress, the ones that aren’t any good, the Liz Cheneys of the world.”
In the immediate aftermath of the January 6 attacks, Graham was just one prominent Republican to come out and criticize Trump for his actions — or inactions — on the infamous day. Some said he encouraged people to march on the Capitol building, while others said he didn’t do enough as the sitting president to tell people to stand down.
Even though he had harsh words for Trump in those days following the attacks, Graham did his best to re-establish his presence within the inner circle with the former president. Just weeks after the riot took place, Graham traveled to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida on what he termed a “peace mission.”
But, the recorded audio of Graham criticizing Trump is proving to be another headache for Republicans heading into primary season for November’s midterm elections.
A few weeks ago, Martin and Burns shared recorded phone calls they have that show that House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy was not happy at all with Trump or some pro-Trump members of the House GOP following the riot.
The reporters released the audio recording, on which McCarthy can be heard saying:
“Look, what the president did is atrocious and totally wrong … We’re 12 days away [from inauguration]. The one point I’d make with Biden, if you have an impeachment and you’re stuck sitting in the Senate, and he needs cabinet members … he’s got a lot of things he’s to have moving, and from a perspective, you put everything else away, this country is very, very divided …
“That’s why I want to reach out to Biden. I wanted the president to meet with Biden, but that’s not going to happen. I want to see about us meeting with Biden, sitting down, a smooth transition to show that we can continue to keep those statements going.”
