Graham crowed, “I’ve never had more access to a president than I have with Donald Trump.”
Viewed simply through these transactional terms, the Graham-Trump alliance benefited the Senator. As Saletan notes, “Graham’s bargain—going easy on Trump’s domestic behavior while pressing him on foreign policy—paid off. From Syria to Iran to North Korea, Trump was doing what Graham wanted.” It turned out that Trump’s occasional rhetorical gestures towards a less interventionist foreign policy were merely campaign rhetoric. In practice, Trump could be as belligerent as George W. Bush, a fact that delighted Graham.
— Jeet HeerReplicated under Fair Use from Lindsey Graham Chose Evil by Jeet Heer.