Quotes by Senator Lindsey Graham on Donald Trump
#LindseyGraham 7/21/15: "❲Donald Trump is❳ the world’s biggest jackass." » #Graham 10/9/17: "Really enjoyed a round of golf with President @realDonaldTrump today…Great fun. Great host." Click To Tweet
Quotes by Senator Lindsey Graham on Donald Trump
THEN
2015 - 2016

“I’m very worried about where we’re headed as a party. I don’t think this is the way to get the Latino vote. If we do not reject this way of thinking clearly, without any ambiguity, we will have lost our way. If we don’t reject it, we’ve lost the moral authority, in my view, to govern this country.”
- July 12, 2015
CNN, July 12, 2015
Graham on Trump: He came in like a 'wrecking ball'
- July 18, 2015
If there was ever any doubt that @realDonaldTrump should not be our commander in chief, this stupid statement should end all doubt.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) July 18, 2015
- July 18, 2015
At the heart of @realDonaldTrump statement is a lack of respect for those who have served – a disqualifying characteristic to be president
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) July 18, 2015
- July 21, 2015
CNN, July 21, 2015
Lindsey Graham: Donald Trump is a 'jackass'
- July 21, 2015
CBS News, July 21, 2015
Lindsey Graham to Trump: 'Stop being a jackass'
- Aug 8, 2015
.@RealDonaldTrump unrelenting & offensive comments about @MegynKelly puts the @GOP at a crossroads w/Mr. Trump
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) August 8, 2015
- Aug 17, 2015
CNN, Aug 17, 2015
Lindsey Graham: Donald Trump's proposals are 'gibberish'
- Aug 25, 2015
Fox News, Aug 25, 2015
Sen. Graham calls GOP rival Trump's immigration plan 'stupid' and 'illegal'
- Sept 2, 2015
MSNBC (via The Hill), Sept 2, 2015
Graham: Trump building a wall between GOP, Hispanics
- Sept 16, 2015
Donald Trump gets his foreign policy from watching television – the Cartoon Network. #CNNDebate #ReadyToLead
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) September 17, 2015
- Oct 24, 2015
Our nation is at a crossroads. We need a president with a nat'l security plan, not a few talking points. http://t.co/v3ELVE0Eor #GrahamPlan
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) October 15, 2015
I said [to major GOP donors], ‘If you care about the future of the Republican Party, and you want to have a viable Republican Party, you better start moving.’ If they don’t push back, they’ll have nobody to blame but themselves.”
- Dec 1, 2015
New York Times, Dec 1, 2015
Wary of Donald Trump, G.O.P. Leaders Are Caught in a Standoff
- Dec 3, 2015
The Hill, Dec 3, 2015
Graham turns on Cruz, GOP's attitudes toward Hispanics, abortion
- Dec 7, 2015
=.@Realdonaldtrump has gone from making absurd comments to being downright dangerous with his bombastic rhetoric.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) December 7, 2015
“What Mr. Trump is doing is undercutting everything we stand for. Going to a military high school, Donald, is not military service. You’ve never worn the uniform… So knock it off. You’re putting people at risk…
“You know how you make America great again? Tell Donald Trump to go to hell. He’s a race-baiting, xenophobic religious bigot. He doesn’t represent my party. He doesn’t represent the values that the men and women who wear the uniform are fighting for… He’s the ISIL man of the year…
“I wish he would leave the party. I don’t care if he runs as an independent. If we lose the 2016 election. So be it… I want to be in a category of 1% who said ‘B.S., this is not who we are at a party, this is not who we are as a nation.’ And I’m calling on Ted Cruz, you’re trying to have it both ways here…
“This is not a policy debate, Ted. This is about you and us and our character as a party. Up your game. Condemn it, because it needs to be condemned.”
- Dec 8, 2015
CNN, Dec 8, 2015
Lindsey Graham: 'Tell Donald Trump to go to hell'
- Dec 8, 2015
“You know how you make America great again? Tell @realDonaldTrump to go to hell” https://t.co/pBLaZ1kgUV
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) December 8, 2015
- Dec 17, 2016
Just when you think it can’t get worse: A leading American candidate for President praising Putin.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) December 17, 2015
- Dec 17, 2016
I suggest Mr. Trump visit the Ukraine and Syrian refugee camps to see if Putin is really respected and deserves praise.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) December 17, 2015
- Jan 19, 2016
The Hill, Jan 19, 2016
Sen Lindsey Graham (R-SC) calls Ted Cruz 'most divisive' senator he’s ever seen and calls Donald Trump 'crazy'https://t.co/NVfjSi4yu1 — FOX & friends (@foxandfriends) January 19, 2016
Graham: Trump 'all-over-the-board crazy'
“[Trump on foreign policy] disturbs the heck out of me… It scares the hell out of me. Donald Trump, I think, is the most unprepared person I’ve ever met to be commander in chief…
“In Donald Trump’s world, the illegal immigrants [are] gonna sell drugs to your kids and rape your wife. Foreigners are going to take your jobs. This is not exactly the America that I envisioned for the 21st century.”
- Jan 21, 2016
Politico, Jan 21, 2016
Graham: Choice between Trump, Cruz like 'being shot or poisoned'
- Feb 17, 2016
Donald Trump is not a conservative Republican. He's an opportunist. He's not fit to be President of the United States.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) February 17, 2016
“I’m not going to try to get into the mind of Donald Trump. Because I don’t think there is a lot of space there. I think he’s a kook. I think he is crazy. I think he’s unfit for office.
And I’m a Republican and he is not. He not a conservative Republican he is an opportunist. He could shoot somebody on Fifth Avenue and 25-to-30 percent people would still follow him because he gives voice to their anger and their frustration. But he is not fit to be president of the United States. Anybody Republican who would accuses George W. Bush of lying to the American people about the Iraq War and he is responsible for 9/11 is not a Republican. They are an extremist. They are crazy…
“He accused most illegal of being rapists and drug dealers. He plays into the idea that maybe Obama is a Muslim… We believe he’s unfit for office. He doesn’t have the temperament or judgement.”
- Feb 17, 2016
Fox News (via Breitbart), Feb 17, 2016
Lindsey Graham vs Lindsey Graham pic.twitter.com/bjGIywlgsp — Dusty Giebel (@DustinGiebel) July 18, 2019
Graham: 70% Of People Will Not Vote for Donald Trump — ‘Completely Unelectable’
- Feb 26, 2016
Talking Points Memo, Feb 26, 2016
WATCH: Lindsey Graham Roasts His ‘Batsh*t’ Republican Colleagues
- March 7, 2016
@realDonaldTrump I never got past 2%.
You aren't prepared to be Commander in Chief of worlds finest fighting force https://t.co/7prb7ZdEVg
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) March 7, 2016
“I think he would destroy a party that I care a lot about…
“I think he’s run a campaign on xenophobia, race baiting, religious bigotry…
“Donald Trump is not the first person in American political history or politics in general to prey on people’s fear. There’s a market out there for send them all back, stop the Chinese from taking our jobs, and don’t be Barack Obama. What he’s got going for him, he’s the anti-Obama in every way in the minds of these people…
“Here’s what I said after the Megyn Kelly episode. It’s better to risk losing without him than try to win with him. When he said most illegal immigrants are rapists and drug dealers, they’re not sending our best, he took our problems in 2012 with Hispanics and made them far worse by espousing forced deportation. Looking back, we should have basically kicked him out of the party, because that kind of rhetoric…
“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. We should have done this months ago…
“And when he said, ‘Let’s ban all Muslims from coming into our country,’ that’s the one that got me. You know, why? Because if you want to win the war on radical — against radical Islam, you need people within the faith. Ninety-nine percent of them reject radical Islam. But what Donald Trump did is he took a whole group of people and put them in one category. The very people we need to partner with, he’s excluded from our country. So that shows me he doesn’t understand the war…
“And the one that got me is the military guys, when he said he would order our soldiers to kill innocent children, civilian noncombatants…
“When you add it all up, you ask me what gets me going with Donald Trump? He doesn’t represent conservatism, doesn’t understand the war. He would be an unfit commander in chief, in my opinion, based on his temperament and his policy choices. And he would destroy the Republican Party’s ability to grow over time.
- March 7, 2016
CNN, March 7, 2016
Transcripts: The Situation Room - March 7, 2016
“Economic populism, xenophobia, race-baiting, and religious bigotry are the stool that he has formed. That is his campaign. That is not conservatism…
“Here is why we’re losing the Hispanic vote. Nobody is going to listen to you about your economic plan or your ability to defend the nation if you’re going to deport their grandmother. I’m in the party of family values. And I like that. There are 11 million illegal immigrants; 60 percent have been here a decade. Many of them have American children, American citizen children and grandchildren. What do you think is going to happen to my Republican friends if our position is that we’re going to take the grandmother of an American citizen, member of the military who is illegal? How do we get that person to vote for us if we’re going to deport their grandmother, when all she’s done is violate the immigration laws? This is why we’re getting killed with Hispanics. And Mr. Trump has taken every problem we have had with Hispanics and poured gasoline on it…
“I can understand being frustrated with illegal immigration. But you’re not going to fix it by having a position like Mr. Trump that has no chance of getting through the Senate…
“We’re about to nominate the one person that not only would lose in 2016, but would destroy the party for decades to come. I would rather lose without Trump than try to win with him…
“I think Mr. Trump destroys the party that I love… Mr. Trump is an interloper and what — a demagogue of the greatest proportion…
“We can lose an election, but I don’t want us to lose our heart and soul. If we nominate Donald Trump, and he carries the banner of the Republican Party, given who he is and what he said about immigrants, about Muslims and young women, we will not just lose the election. We have lost the heart and soul of the conservative movement. That’s what is at stake…
“How do you bring the broken and divided country together? Is Mr. Trump the answer to the problems in the Mideast? His foreign policy is gibberish. The Mideast is a mess. The Republican Party is at a tipping point here. We’re going down one of two roads, the Trump road, which is the destruction of conservatism.”
- March 20, 2016
CBS News, March 20, 2016
Face the Nation transcripts March 20, 2016: Kasich, Sanders, Graham
- March 24, 2016
Talking Points Memo, March 24, 2016
Winning The 2016 Election (VIDEO)
- May 3, 2016
If we nominate Trump, we will get destroyed…….and we will deserve it.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) May 3, 2016
- May 3, 2016
Any doubt left Trump is completely unhinged? His assertion Ted Cruz’s father was associated with Lee Harvey Oswald should remove ALL doubt.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) May 3, 2016
- May 6, 2016
Talking Points Memo, May 6, 2016
Lindsey Graham Goes Full On #NeverTrump
- May 6, 2016
…..do not believe he is a reliable GOP conservative nor has he displayed the judgment and temperament to serve as Commander in Chief. (5)
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) May 6, 2016
“Quite frankly, he lost me when he said my friend John McCain was a loser because he was captured as a POW. He lost me when he accused George W. Bush of lying to the American people about the Iraq War, and he thinks Putin’s a good guy, so, I just can’t go there…
“I’ve just got a hard time supporting somebody who claims that Ted Cruz’s dad was associated with Lee Harvey Oswald and involved in the Kennedy assassination. I’ve got a hard time supporting somebody for president who spent thousands of dollars of their own money trying to find out if President Obama was born in Kenya versus Hawaii. I think that’s crazy. I’m just glad we’re having the convention in Cleveland, not Area 51. I think Donald Trump has gone to places where very few people have gone, and I’m not going with him…
“I just believe his temperament and judgment is not sufficient to be commander in chief of the finest fighting force in the world. I think his foreign policy is gibberish…
“I just really do not believe that Donald Trump has the temperament and judgment to be commander in chief…
“Eating a taco is probably not going to fix the problems that we have with Hispanics. I think embracing Donald Trump is embracing demographic death…
“I just can’t go where Donald Trump takes the party and the country. I’m sorry I can’t.”
- May 6, 2016
Time, May 6, 2016
Read Lindsey Graham's Interview Announcing He Won't Vote for Donald Trump
“To the Hispanic community, I get it why you don’t like us. I mean, who’s going to vote for somebody that’s gonna deport their grandmother?… We’re in a ditch, and I don’t know if we’ll ever get out of the ditch.”
- May 10, 2016
Politico, May 11, 2016
Graham sympathizes with Hispanics on Trump: I get why you don't like us
- Sept 8, 2016
Last night, if you were looking for competency Donald Trump fell short. #CommanderInChiefForum
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) September 8, 2016
- Oct 8, 2016
I have never been comfortable with Donald Trump as our Republican nominee.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) October 8, 2016
- Oct 8, 2016
Name one sports team, university, publicly-held company, etc. that would accept a person like this as their standard bearer?
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) October 8, 2016
- Nov 8, 2016
In the prez race, voting for Hillary Clinton was always a non-starter and I couldn’t go where Donald Trump wanted to take the USA & GOP. #2
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) November 8, 2016
- Nov 8, 2016
I voted @Evan_McMullin for President. I appreciate his views on a strong America and the need to rebuild our military. #3
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) November 8, 2016
- Dec 16, 2016
I hope President-elect Trump won’t become the 3rd American president to misjudge Vladmir Putin.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) December 16, 2016
#LindseyGraham 5/6/16: "I just can’t go where Donald Trump takes the party and the country. I’m sorry I can’t." » #Graham 4/19/18: "I am all in. Keep it up, Donald." Click To Tweet
NOW
2017 - 2019

- March 7, 2017
How good was the meeting with @POTUS?
I gave him my NEW cell phone number.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) March 7, 2017
April 19, 2017 -
Fox News (via Politico), April 19, 2018
Lindsey Graham heaps praise on Trump: 'I am all in'
Oct 9, 2017 -
Really enjoyed a round of golf with President @realDonaldTrump today.
President Trump shot a 73 in windy and wet conditions!
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) October 9, 2017
How bad did he beat me? I did better in the presidential race than today on the golf course!
Great fun. Great host.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) October 9, 2017
“One thing he likes, I think, about me, is I don’t quit… He saw in me a guy that had an idea that made sense and was willing to fight. So that’s created sort of a bond.”
Oct 23, 2017 -
Politico, Oct. 23, 2017
Once a ‘jackass’ and ‘idiot,’ Trump and Graham now pals
“[Trump has immigration overhaul] credibility no one else has…
“He’s a lot of fun. He’s just like me. He’s just a B.S. artist on the golf course.”
Oct 26, 2017 -
New York Times, Oct. 26, 2017
As Other Republican Senators Bolt, Lindsey Graham Cozies Up to Trump
Oct 31, 2017 -
Fox News via The Atlantic, Nov 2, 2017
Lindsey Graham's 'Religious War'
Nov 30, 2017 -
CNN (via Newsweek), Nov 30, 2017
Republicans' mind-blowing hypocrisy in their attempt to attack the media, everyone: pic.twitter.com/EKfXQGUeiu — Timothy Burke (@bubbaprog) November 30, 2017
Lindsey Graham Called Trump a 'Kook' Last Year but Slammed the Media for the Same Insult
- Dec 10, 2017
Trump International Golf Club is a spectacular golf course.
Great day of fun playing with @POTUS @realDonaldTrump. https://t.co/92Xjk8d8B2
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) December 10, 2017
Jan 8, 2018 -
ABC: The View (via Entertainment Weekly), 10/2/19
"HE'S OUR PRESIDENT": Sen. @LindseyGrahamSC reacts to his highly critical statements of Donald Trump during the campaign: "No, I don't think he's a xenophobic, race-baiting religious bigot as president." https://t.co/f8u2wc159S pic.twitter.com/dVMxWXAv50 — The View (@TheView) January 13, 2018
Sen. Lindsey Graham on The View: If Trump doesn't call himself a genius, no one will
Jan 30, 2018 -
President @realDonaldTrump made a compelling case tonight that the tax cuts and his economic policies are working for America.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) January 31, 2018
We saw a president who was willing to more than meet the Democrats in the middle when it comes to fixing a broken immigration system.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) January 31, 2018
It was a strong speech emphasizing America is open for business and going on the offense when it comes to crime and terrorism.
I’m very pleased President Trump is empowering our military and putting our enemies on notice.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) January 31, 2018
April 19, 2018 -
As to the 2020 presidential race, I believe President @realDonaldTrump will run for reelection and I intend to support him. https://t.co/vsExZ1XehG
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) April 19, 2018
June 14, 2018 -
Happy Birthday, Mr. President!
You’re keeping your promise to make America safer and more prosperous.
And unfortunately for me, you’re doing all this without losing a step in your golf game!@realDonaldTrump #TrumpBirthday pic.twitter.com/PJRa54FVAP
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) June 14, 2018
June 15, 2018 -
CNN interview
Politico, June 15, 2018
Lindsey Graham on CNN: "If you don't like me working with President Trump to make the world a better place, I don't give a shit" pic.twitter.com/uXr1bLPVTG — Jon Levine (@LevineJonathan) October 1, 2018
Sen. Lindsey Graham doesn't give a 'sh--' if you don't like him working with Trump
July 24, 2018 -
Totally agree with President Trump’s observation about Russia not being long-term pro-Republican or pro-Trump. Putin is pro-Chaos and is an Equal Opportunity Disruptor of the American electoral system.
Let’s act together, let’s act now. https://t.co/iY5or4mLpA
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) July 24, 2018
Aug 11, 2018 -
Washington Post, Aug 11, 2018
Trump Condemns ‘All Types of Racism’ After a Week of Racially Tinged Remarks
Aug 2018 -
USA Today, Aug. 25, 2018
'I did NOT know about the meeting': Trump blasts Sessions, media and FBI
Sept 5, 2018 -
President @realDonaldTrumps fate will be determined by the results he achieves for the American people, not by a book about the process.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) September 5, 2018
By any reasonable measure we have one of the strongest economies in modern history, President Trump has rebuilt a broken military, and we are pushing back hard against America’s enemies.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) September 5, 2018
Sept 11, 2018 -
It is increasingly clear it was the Obama Administration who politicized the DOJ/FBI, not the Trump Administration.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) September 11, 2018
Sept 20, 2018 -
Great job tonight by President @realDonaldTrump in Las Vegas laying out how strong America has become economically and how much safer we are with a strong military.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) September 21, 2018
Oct 6, 2018 -
…..finally thank you President @realDonaldTrump for the good judgment in selecting Judge Kavanaugh and the toughness and determination to stick by his side and see it through to Victory!
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) October 6, 2018
Nov 2, 2018 -
New York Times, Nov 2, 2018
What Happened to Lindsey Graham? He’s Become a Conservative ‘Rock Star’
Dec 21, 2018 -
Fox News (via Business Insider), Dec 22, 2018
'Mr. President, dig in': Lindsey Graham praises Trump's refusal to compromise over border wall funding even as the government shuts down
Jan 7, 2019 -
Good decision by President @realDonaldTrump to address the nation about the crisis at our southern border.
Great opportunity to explain to the American people why we need more border security funding.
The current situation at the border is indeed a national security crisis.
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) January 7, 2019
Jan 8, 2019 -
Fox News (via Talking Points Memo), Jan 9, 2019
Graham calls Trump speech "most presidential I've seen" pic.twitter.com/KzjjqDIYgG — TPM Livewire (@TPMLiveWire) January 9, 2019
Graham Lauds Trump Speech: ‘The Most Presidential I’ve Seen’ Him
“I have never been called this much by a president in my life. It’s weird, and it’s flattering, and it creates some opportunity. It also creates some pressure… I personally like him. We play golf. He’s very nice to me…
“Here’s what I worry about. That we’re going to get it wrong in Syria and Afghanistan. I worry more about the policy stuff. And I have more influence than I’ve ever had…
“I went from, ‘O.K., he’s president’ to ‘How can I get to be in his orbit?’, to ‘How can I have a say in what’s going to happen today, tomorrow and next week?.’… I’m getting into the smaller orbit now…
“The point with Trump is, he’s in on the joke… If you could go to dinner with us [shaking his head]… Do I trust him? I trust the president to want to be successful… At the intersection of all this theater is that he wants to be a successful president, and I want him to be successful under terms that I think are good for the country.”
Feb 2019 -
New York Times, Feb 25, 2019
How Lindsey Graham Went From Trump Skeptic to Trump Sidekick
Lindsey Graham 5/3/16: "If we nominate Trump, we will get destroyed…and we will deserve it." » Graham 6/15/18: "If you don’t like me working with President Trump…I don’t give a shit." Click To Tweet