Former South Carolina Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer told Newsmax on Thursday that residents of the Palmetto State are fed up with Sen. Lindsay Graham, which is why he's running to unseat Graham in next year's Republican primary.
"The people of South Carolina are fed up with Lindsay Graham," Bauer, who was lieutenant governor for two terms under Mark Sanford from 2003-2011, told "Rob Schmitt Tonight." "Thirty-plus years of him up there saying he was for less government, saying he was going to fix the debt.
"He ran on term limits of 12 years. Well, he's 19 years expired past his term limit, and we're fed up. And he's never had a real challenger that could mount a real campaign.
"Things are different this time. And Lindsey Graham is going to get to go to the retirement home where so many of these senators go, like [Mitch] McConnell [R-Ky.] and [Thom] Tillis [R-N.C.] and [John] Cornyn [R-Texas]; they're all going to get to go do something else. It's not supposed to be a place to stay for life," he continued.
"Our forefathers never envisioned people that would stay there for decades. It's not how the system is supposed to work."
Graham, chair of the Senate Budget Committee and longtime member and former chair of the Judiciary Committee, will be seeking a fourth term next year after serving five terms in the House. Graham has been criticized by Trump's base as a symbol of the Washington, D.C., establishment, as well as his advocacy for continued U.S. support for Ukraine and his cozy relationship with some Senate Democrats.
Also, when Graham ran for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination, he called Trump a
"kook" and "crazy" and said, "He's unfit for office." Still, Trump endorsed Graham for reelection in March and posted a photo Wednesday on Truth Social of him playing golf with the senator on Graham's 70th birthday.
"First off, I understand how the swamp works," said Bauer, 56. "And the president's got to use him right now to get anything passed. Because we have such a tight margin of folks that don't vote like Republicans is one of the very reasons why I've chosen to run.
"Lindsey Graham isn't a Republican — maybe for Vermont, but darn sure not for red South Carolina. He doesn't represent us. He's forgotten all about all about us."
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Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.