Graham: ‘The Gold Standard for Republican Foreign Policy Is No Longer Ronald Reagan’

Saturday, during an appearance on Fox News Channel, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), a longtime proponent of U.S. intervention in the Middle East, applauded the Trump administration’s decision to take military action against Iran.

The South Carolina Republican called the toppling of the Iranian regime “the biggest change in a thousand years.”

He also called President Donald Trump the “gold standard” for Republican foreign policy.

“My feeling today is I’m glad President Trump won and Kamala Harris lost,” he declared. “I don’t try to be political in moments like this. But I am responding to the senator from Arizona who took a shot at this operation. Unfortunately, the modern Democratic Party is pathetic in the face of evil. General Soleimani, al-Baghdadi — they embrace deals that make no sense. The difference between Donald Trump and our Democratic colleagues is that he understands the world. I’ve been talking continuously for days and weeks. He is of the mindset the Ayatollah is Hitler in a robe wearing a turban, that he’s not capable of changing his ways. He reached out to him to test to see if he would. Donald Trump doesn’t get entangled in forever wars, but he sure as hell stands up to the bad guys and he makes it safer. This is the most consequential any president has made since 1979. Because of President Trump’s understanding of the evil nature of this regime, he set in motion its demise.”

Graham continued, “This military operation is overwhelming. It will bring the machine down. President Trump called on the Iranian people to seize the moment. I believe they will. What’s going to happen is the regime will gradually lose power throughout the country. There will be cities that fall to the people. The regime will get isolated. To military leaders in Iran: We are watching everything you do. President Trump says, lay down your arms. Those that do will be rewarded. Those that fight for the Ayatollah will pay a heavy price. I hope the Ayatollah is captured or killed. He’s a miserable human being. He is Hitler in a robe. He has killed over 30,000 of his own people to maintain power. He’s a religious Nazi. He wants to kill all the Jews. He wants to purify Islam. He wants to come after us. And if you don’t believe that, you are crazy. Hitler wrote a book. He wanted to kill all the Jews. Nobody believed him, and 50 million people later, it was too late. Donald Trump is a different cat. President Trump is a man of peace, but a man not to be trifled with. What do I think will happen? I think over time, this regime will fall.”

“Amd let me tell you what will replace it — you’re going to have people in Iran who love America, love Trump and like Lindsey Graham,” he said. “And they’re going to be our allies. It’s going to be messy. But here’s the big picture — with the fall of the largest state sponsor of terrorism — the pathway to peace and prosperity in the Mideast — it’s going to be wide and it’s going to be long. It’s goiing to be our thousand-year moment. What will happen next if the regime falls? I think Saudi Arabia, the keeper of the holy mosque in Mecca and Medina, the center of Islam, will go back to the table to try do peace with Israel. We were close before October 7. October 7 stopped normalization between Saudi Arabia and Israel. I think that when this regime collapses, we will be back at the table of normalization. If Saudi Arabia recognizes Israel, it will be the biggest change in a thousand years in the history of the Mideast. If this regime falls, Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis — terrorist networks supported by Iran will collapse slowly but surely. The mothership of terrorism is about to go down. There’s a new dawn coming in the Mideast. There’s an opportunity for the region to build on the Abraham Accords started in President Trump’s first term. This is the most significant thing that happened in my lifetime. This is the most significant thing that has happened in the Middle East in a thousand years.”