Sen. Lindsey Graham said former President Donald Trump 's second impeachment trial set such a bad precedent that House Republica...
Sen. Lindsey Graham said former President Donald Trump's second impeachment trial set such a bad precedent that House Republicans, if they retake the majority, will go after Vice President Kamala Harris for her Black Lives Matter support.
'If you use this model, I don't know how Kamala Harris doesn't get impeached if the Republicans take over the House, because she actually bailed out rioters and one of the rioters went back to the streets and broke somebody's head open,' Graham told Chris Wallace on 'Fox News Sunday.'
Graham, a top Trump ally in the Senate, called the ex-president the 'most potent force' in the Republican Party and suggested Trump's daughter-in-law Lara Trump would likely win the 2022 North Carolina GOP Senate primary after retiring incumbent Sen. Richard Burr voted in favor of Trump's conviction.
Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham said Sunday that he believed President Donald Trump's second impeachment trial set such a bad precedent that if Republicans win back the House they'll try to impeach Vice President Kamala Harris for her Black Lives Matter support
'Democrats have sat on the sidelines and watched the country be burned down for a year and a half and hadn’t said a damn word and most Republicans are tired of the hypocrisy,' Graham said, after suggesting Harris (pictured) could be impeached over backing a bail-out fund for BLM protesters
The twice acquitted Trump was spotted golfing Sunday at his West Palm Beach, Florida Trump International Golf Course. Graham said on 'Fox News Sunday' he planned to travel to Florida to visit with the ex-president soon
Graham said he objected to the speed in which the House of Representatives, which is controlled by the Democrats, impeached Trump on the heels of the January 6 insurrection.
'He is the first president to ever be impeached without a lawyer, without a witness, without an ability to confront those against him and the trial record was a complete joke, hearsay upon hearsay and we've opened Pandora's box to future presidents,' Graham said.
Graham said Democrats did this 'because they hate his guts.'
'This thing is turning into a nightmare for the presidency,' the South Carolina Republican offered.
He pointed to Harris as someone equally impeachable because on June 1, the then U.S. senator asked Americans to help protesters reacting to the Memorial Day death of George Floyd to donate to the Minnesota Freedom Fund.
Since then, a number of reports have come out that said the Minnesota Freedom Fund helped release rape and murder subjects from jail while they were awaiting trial.
The organization's aim is to release those awaiting trial 'as we seek to end discriminatory, coercive, and oppressive jailing.'
'Democrats have sat on the sidelines and watched the country be burned down for a year and a half and hadn’t said a damn word and most Republicans are tired of the hypocrisy,' Graham argued.
Graham was echoing the whataboutism on display Sunday by Trump's defense lawyer Michael van der Veen, who went as far to say that MAGA rioters were actually inspired by the summer's Black Lives Matter protests when they attacked the Capitol Building.
'Many of the people who infiltrated the Capitol took pictures of themselves and posted them on social media,' van der Veen pointed out. 'To some, it seems, they thought it was all a game. They apparently believe that violent mobs, destruction of property, rioting, assaulting police and vandalizing historic treasures was somehow now acceptable in the United States.'
Graham (right) made the comments on 'Fox News Sunday' with Chris Wallace (left), where he also called Trump the 'most potent force' in the Republican Party and said Trump's daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, would likely win the 2022 North Carolina GOP Senate primary
The former president is seen on his West Palm Beach golf course Sunday, as Graham referred to him as 'the most vibrant member of the Republican Party' as well as the 'most potent member'
'Where might they have gotten that idea?' the Trump lawyer mused. 'I would suggest to you that it was not from Mr. Trump.'
'I submit to you that it was month after month of political leaders and media personalities, bloodthirsty for ratings, glorifying civil unrest and condemning the reasonable law enforcement measures that are required to quell violent mobs,' van der Veen said.
Democratic House impeachment managers were trying to convince senators that Trump was directly responsible for inciting the insurrection on January 6.
They came 10 Republican votes shy of conviction.
Wallace asked Graham if he thought Trump beared any responsibility for the MAGA riot.
'No, in terms of law, no,' the senator said. 'He bears responsibility of pushing narratives about the election that I think are not sound and not true, but this was politically protected speech.'
Graham also wasn't swayed by the last bit of evidence the House Democratic impeachment managers got added to the record - a statement by Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler that detailed a call between Trump and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.
In the call, Trump resists calling off the mob, and initially doesn't believe it's his supporters responsible for the attack.
'It doesn't tell me a whole lot, because it's all hearsay,' Graham said.
The South Carolina senator then expressed that he believed Trump needed to stay central to the Republican Party.
Graham said he planned to go visit the ex-president in Florida soon.
On Sunday, Trump, who's been living at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, was spotted golfing at nearby course.
'Donald Trump is the most vibrant member of the Republican Party. The Trump movement is alive and well. People believe he brought change to Washington. Policy wise it was long overdue,' he said.
'All I can say is that the most potent force in the Republican Party is President Trump. We need Trump-plus and at the end of the day, I’ve been involved in politics for over 25 years, the president is a handful and what happened on January 6th was terrible for the country, but he's not singularly to blame,' Graham continued.
Graham said that former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley was wrong to say that the party should walk away from Trump.
'North Carolina, the biggest winner I think of this whole impeachment trial is Lara Trump,' he added. 'My dear friend Richard Burr who I like and have been friends to a long time just made Lara Trump almost a certain nominee for the Senate seat in North Carolina to replace him.'
Burr was one of seven Republican senators who voted Saturday for Trump's conviction. He previously announced his retirement from the Senate after the current term.
Lara Trump hasn't said if she'll pursue the Senate seat yet.
'If she runs - and I’ll certainly would be behind her because I think she represents the future of the Republican Party,' Graham said.
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