Senator Lindsey Graham was not happy with President Donald Trump pulling the security detail of former administration officials.
The South Carolina Republican, who claimed he is “very supportive” of the president’s agenda, called out the decision to revoke security for his former adviser John Bolton and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. Graham told CNN “State of the Union” host Dana Bash that the Senate needs to look into why Trump left Bolton “hanging,” agreeing the move was a “mistake.”
“Should Trump have revoked that security?” Bash asked.
.@LindseyGrahamSC tells @DanaBashCNN it was a mistake for Trump to revoke security for John Bolton and Mike Pompeo: “Whether you like Bolton or anybody else, we need to make sure that, if you serve in our government and you take out a foreign power at the request of the… pic.twitter.com/7xfXLKcRMe
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) January 26, 2025
“You know, I’ve talked to Senator Cotton about this. He’s the chairman of the Intel committee, he’s very, very good man. He said he had a briefing and he asked the briefers if it were you or your family, would you think you deserve a detail? And they said yes,” Graham responded.
“You know, whether you like John Bolton or not, that’s not the question for me, is it? You don’t want to leave people hanging,” he added.
“There’s no doubt in my mind the Iranians have been out to kill President Trump. I’ve been briefed about it. I know he’s been briefed about it. I’m glad he has protection. Whether you like Bolton or anybody else, we need to make sure that if you serve in our government and you take a foreign power at the request of the administration, that we do not leave you hanging,” Graham contended.
Bolton, who served as the ambassador to the United Nations from 2005-2006 before being named Trump’s national security advisor during his first term, took to social media to complain about losing the taxpayer-funded security.
“The Justice Department filed criminal charges against an Iranian Revolutionary Guard official in 2022 for attempting to hire a hit man to target me,” he wrote. “That threat remains today, as also demonstrated by the recent arrest of someone trying to arrange for President Trump’s own assassination.”
Neocon ’til the end: John Bolton will be peeved if Iran kills him and Trump doesn’t attack https://t.co/CxIBXcNh7D via @BIZPACReview
— BPR based (@DumpstrFireNews) January 25, 2025
“The Senate needs to look at what happened and sit down and figure out what’s the best way forward,” Graham told Bash.
“Everybody doesn’t deserve a detail all their life. It needs to be as needed. But what Senator Cotton told me, the threat seemed to be real against these individuals. And I don’t want to leave them hanging. It makes it hard to recruit people in the future,” he contended.
“And, you know, if something happened to these people and, you know, President Trump needs to think about, you know, getting people to serve in the future. Owning that decision,” he added.
Senator Tom Cotton said he would encourage Trump “to revisit the decision for those people” during an interview with Fox News.
“The threat to anyone involved in President Trump’s strike on Qasem Soleimani is persistent. It’s real,” the Arkansas senator said on “Fox News Sunday,” adding that “Iran is committed to vengeance against all of these people.”
Social media users had no sympathy for Bolton and blasted Graham for his stance.
Lindsay Graham epitomizes what’s wrong with our governments over spending and wasting money. It especially demonstrates how our government spends money on Politicians that are for their personal benefit. Bolton is out, so is his government freebies
— Joanna Smith (@joannaonthelake) January 26, 2025
What is there to look into? He revoked their Secret Service protection. What more do they need to know? If he thinks they should have continual protection, he can introduce legislation to provide it.
— Reggie Hargett (@ReggieHargett) January 26, 2025
Ask Lins how much Bolton and the others are worth after careers in big government and why they can’t afford their own security?
— David Westrom (@westromda) January 26, 2025
I want Graham out.
He talks out of both side of his mouth.
We need Congress to reflect reality and to speak truth, even when it opposes the initiatives their constituents and donors demand.
We need more senators that are like Trump, and less like Graham, Thune, McConnell et al
— Sean (@SeanALarabee) January 26, 2025
No. They can pay for their own security.
— Emy 4 Trump ♀️⚔️ (@EMastrro) January 26, 2025
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