Lindsey Graham: Trump Can Make Republican Party Bigger, or Destroy It
'He can make it bigger; he can make it stronger'
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Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham claimed Donald Trump has the ability to grow the Republican Party’s reach or destroy it altogether.
During an interview that aired Sunday, Graham told "Axios on HBO" that Trump has the ability to make the party "something that nobody else I know can make it."
"He can make it bigger; he can make it stronger; he can make it more diverse; and he could destroy it," he said.
Graham added that it is significant that Trump was able to win the presidency, noting that Sen. Mitt Romney and the late Sen. John McCain failed to do.
He also claimed Trump has a dark side but alas, "there’s some magic there."
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But just a few months ago, Graham appeared to be severing ties with Trump after the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol, saying at the time, "count me out. Enough is enough."
WATCH:
.@LindseyGrahamSC to @jonathanvswan: "I could throw [Trump] over tomorrow. Why aren't I?"
— Axios (@axios) March 8, 2021
Swan: "Yeah. That's what I really don't understand."
Graham: "Well, then you don't understand me very much."
Swan: "I don't. That's why I'm asking you." #AxiosOnHBO pic.twitter.com/ASwsqPUIdw
Earlier this year, Graham said Republican Party didn't have a "snowball’s chance in hell of taking the majority without Donald Trump."
If you don’t get that, you’re just not looking."
"He was a hell of a president on all of the things that conservatives really believe in."
Graham's remarks come after reports that Republican voters say they want President Donald Trump to "play a big role" in the GOP moving forward, according to a new poll.
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Three out of four Republicans want to see Trump become a more dominant figure within the party.
Last month, Republican South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott said Trump remains “the most powerful political figure on either side.”
“I still believe that President Trump is the most powerful political figure on either side, the news loves President Trump, or they hate President Trump, which gives him plenty of coverage," Scott told Fox News’s “America’s Newsroom."
“What we need is, in fact, a unified message from the Republican Party."We don’t need personalities driving our future,” Scott added.
In February, Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said he would "absolutely" back President Donald Trump if he wins the GOP nomination in 2024.
