(Video: Fox News)
Fox News host Jesse Watters pressed Sen. Lindsey Graham on Thursday about why Congress seems to care more about helping Ukraine deliver a “whoop-ass” to the Russians than they do about Americans getting their “asses whooped” here.
The pair’s discussion on Fox News’ “Jesse Watters Primetime” began with the host specifically saying, “You know how we feel about this. We want to help Ukraine, obviously, but it goes out the door so fast … and meanwhile, Americans are looking around like ‘hey, Congress, what about us?'”
“Do you feel that?” Watters then asked.
Graham claimed that he “totally” gets it, but then turned right around and began trotting out excuses for why the fate of the Ukrainians matters more to Congress than the fate of their own constituents.
“I totally get it. Here’s the problem with the Ukraine: They run out of money in terms of buying weapons, I think, at the middle of May. So the Ukrainian army is delivering a whoop-ass on the Russian army. They’re about to run out of ammunition. They’re not asking for any soldiers. They’re not asking for us to take over the skies anymore,” he said.
Note that the discussion between the two men came hours after Graham lobbied on the Senate floor on behalf of a $40 billion aid package for Ukraine:
Sen. Lindsey Graham R-SC now taking shots at GOP critics of the Ukraine aid package. “$40 billion is a lot of money, but if we can stop Putin in the Ukraine, it would be the best money you could ever spend.” pic.twitter.com/KwnLFr9Eji
— Jamie Dupree (@jamiedupree) May 12, 2022
Clearly frustrated, Watters interrupted Graham to point out that the Russians aren’t the only ones getting their asses whooped: “I know, but we’re getting our asses whooped here, senator. You know that. Come on!”
“And we should have gotten that weaponry out to them a year ago when we saw the buildup coming,” he added.
“Oh boy, amen!” Graham promptly said in response to the point about the weapons, before returning to defending Congress’ obsession with helping Ukraine.
“Common sense tells you that Putin’s not going to stop in Ukraine. Common sense tells you he was going to invade. Well, the people running the border are also the ones trying to prevent Putin from going in the Ukraine,” he said.
“If I thought pulling the plug on Ukraine would make any problem better here, I would entertain it. But our problems here don’t get better by allowing Putin to win in Ukraine because he won’t stop,” he asserted.
To be clear, many authoritative voices say that no, Russian President Vladimir Putin is not interested in invading any other countries besides Ukraine. They say specifically that Putin only wants Ukraine to use it as a buffer state to protect Russia from NATO expansion:
This is a very useful #longread on Russian behaviour towards Ukraine – it explains why Putin is acting now, and suggests that he primarily wants a friendly (or at least neutral) buffer state between Russia and NATO, not imperial expansion.https://t.co/G9m7ptwAf6
— Lee Jones (@DrLeeJones) February 24, 2022
Russia wants Ukraine to be a neutral buffer state. This campaign has nothing to do with Poland. Putin does not have a military capable of marching through Europe. It exists only in imaginations. https://t.co/pGwiTKsSP8
— Jordan Schachtel @ dossier.substack.com (@JordanSchachtel) March 3, 2022
Watters responded to Graham’s assertions by pointing out that it’s possible for Congress to take care of both the Ukrainians and the American people at the same time.
“But can’t we do both, senator? Can’t we do fast-track for America? Everything’s fast-track for overseas, but can we fast-track it here?” he asked.
Graham ostensibly agreed with Watters’ point and said he’s not trying to argue against it. But he then turned right around again and defended Congress’ overtures to Ukraine.
“Listen, I’m with you. Why don’t we fast-track changing our laws at the border? Why don’t we fast-track oil and gas? Why don’t we drill for oil and gas that we own? Listen, we don’t have the Congress as Republicans. Everything you say, I agree with,” he said.
“Listen, you understand the importance of getting Putin stopped in Ukraine because he’s going to keep going. China will take Taiwan. But if the Ukrainian military can stop him in the Ukraine without any American soldiers, that’s a great day for freedom. That’s a great day for America,” he continued.
“But I am with you. I wish we would do more on the energy front. Does it make any sense to shut down oil and gas drilling in America and be more dependent on Russia and Iran? It makes absolutely no sense. But here’s what I want to tell your listeners: If we can win in Ukraine, and I think we can, we can stop Putin, the world gets better overnight,” Graham continued.
“If he takes Ukraine, he doesn’t get prosecuted as a war criminal [and] he’ll keep going. He wants to rewrite the map of Europe, and China is just waiting to see what to do with Taiwan. All the chips in the world for our computer, high-tech industry comes from Taiwan. So there’s a lot at stake here. But I’m not trying to argue with you that we should be more here at home,” Graham said.
Satisfied with the senator’s answer, Watters then grilled him about the bombshell audiotape from January 2021 of him predicting that then-President-elect Joe Biden would somehow unify the nation.
New audio: Lindsey Graham touted Biden as ‘best person’ to rally country, blamed Jan 6 on Trump via @americanwire_ – https://t.co/nOXAYeEJgK
— Bo Snerdley (@BoSnerdley) May 11, 2022
To his credit, Graham admitted that he’d erred in his judgment about Biden.
“I was wrong. I’ve known Joe for 30 years. He’s a nice guy, but he’s been a disaster as president. … Not only has he failed to bring us together, he has made us less safe. He’s ruined our economy. All the bad guys are moving around the world. They didn’t do this on Trump’s watch because they were afraid of him. Nobody fears Joe Biden abroad, and at home, his policies are failing,” he said.
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