Senator Lindsey Graham has said the U.S. conflict with Iran will be a complete “mistake” if the current Iranian regime is still in power when it ends. He made this statement during a television appearance, where he also made several promises and threats that are normally handled by the White House.
During his Monday night appearance, Graham offered Saudi Arabia a “mutual defense agreement” against Iran: an unusual move for a senator. According to Mediaite, he said the U.S. would go to war if Saudi Arabia were attacked by Iran, offering “protection in perpetuity.” He also challenged Saudi Arabia directly: “To Saudi Arabia, our embassy was hit in Riyadh, do you not have an obligation to join the fight with us? You have to do that.”
Graham has pushed for a more aggressive U.S. stance on Iran for years. He has also strongly supported President Trump’s recent military strikes carried out jointly with Israel. One strike killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Another hit an elementary school, killing at least 175 people, most of them young girls. President Trump denied U.S. responsibility, but reports show a Tomahawk missile, a weapon used exclusively by the U.S., struck the school.
Graham’s unchecked role in shaping U.S. war strategy goes well beyond what a senator should be doing
Graham reportedly traveled to Israel for a secret meeting with Israeli intelligence and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, where he gave advice on how to convince President Trump to join the attacks on Iran.
During his TV appearance, he called the U.S. fight against “religious Nazis” and compared the late Ayatollah and his son to Adolf Hitler. “People got Hitler wrong,” Graham said, arguing the world was similarly wrong about Iran’s regime.
He called former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden “fools” on Iran, and praised President Trump for knowing that “they do not want peaceful nuclear power, they want a bomb to purify Islam, to destroy the state of Israel, and come after us.” Graham believes that if Trump had not acted, Iran would have had nuclear capability “within weeks.” The conflict has also been expanding beyond Israel as Iran launches strikes on multiple fronts.
Graham added that “if they had a weapon they would use it,” and directly called anyone who doubted this “stupid” and “a fool.” He also challenged U.S. allies to “join this fight,” specifically targeting Spain for not letting the U.S. use its airbases.
He said he was “encouraging” President Trump “to move all of our bases out of Spain” because they “will not let us use those planes to protect the world against a religious Nazi regime.” The war’s regional reach has grown further, with Iran firing ballistic missiles into Turkish airspace, pushing NATO to respond. On U.S. service members who have died in the conflict, Graham said “the best you can do is finish the job he died for.”
His comments drew strong reactions online. Conservative activist Megyn Kelly asked on X, “When did Lindsey Graham become our president?” and noted that in a short period, Graham had “threatened Lebanon, Cuba, the Saudis, the wider Arab region and now, checks notes, Spain.”
Published: Mar 10, 2026 01:41 pm