“He had one bad moment, and that was on the Jan. 6 thing when he stood up [and said], ‘All right, now I’ve had it. That’s it. I can’t do it anymore,'” Trump told Fox & Friends during a phone interview.
Trump claimed that Graham called him about 40 minutes later, asking, “Did I really say that? I can’t believe it,” and took it back.
Standing beside President Donald Trump during a White House event, Lindsey Graham addresses judicial confirmations as Trump playfully checks his watch. The lighthearted exchange reflected the close political alliance the two developed after years of once-public disagreements. | Source: Getty Images
The late senator had appeared to turn his back on Trump after supporters stormed the Capitol, delaying the official count of Joe Biden’s 2020 Electoral College victory.
“Trump and I, we’ve had a hell of a journey. I hate it to end this way. Oh my God, I hate it. From my point of view, he’s been a consequential president,” Graham said on the Senate floor after order was restored. “All I can say is count me out. Enough is enough. I tried to be helpful.”
By May of that year, however, Graham was publicly back in the future president’s corner. He told reporters that Republicans could not move forward or grow without Trump.
Because of that brief break on the Senate floor, Trump joked that he gives Graham a score of “99 instead of 100” for his loyalty. He noted that a lot of people are a 100, but Graham had that “one little moment.”
Trump touched on the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, adding that he “had nothing to do with that, by the way, just so you understand.” He expressed pride in his Day 1 mass pardons for those convicted or charged in connection with the attack.
Lindsey Graham speaks to reporters at the White House following remarks on a major counterterrorism operation. The appearance highlighted his prominent role in national security discussions and his status as one of the administration’s most visible Senate allies. | Source: Getty Images
