Lindsey Graham Fires Back After Far-Left Reps Call for His Resignation
The left couldn’t defeat Sen. Lindsey Graham in his re-election bid this year. They’re not going to get him to resign, either.
In tweets Wednesday, the South Carolina Republican said he “must be doing something right when the most radical liberal politicians and media pundits in America are calling for my resignation.”
Several members of the far-left contingent of the House Democratic Caucus called for him to step down due to claims he meddled in the recount of the presidential vote in Georgia. A hand recount last week ended with Joe Biden beating President Donald Trump in the state by 0.25 percent, according to Fox News, although the Trump campaign has requested another recount.
Graham also said he would “not hesitate to vigorously oppose the radical domestic and foreign policy agenda of The Squad and other liberal critics.”
The kerfuffle sprang from an interview where Georgia Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger claimed that Graham had pressured him to throw out ballots in counties where there was a high prevalence of signatures on the ballot that didn’t match the voter rolls.
“Raffensperger said he was stunned that Graham appeared to suggest that he find a way to toss legally cast ballots,” The Washington Post reported Tuesday. “Absent court intervention, Raffensperger doesn’t have the power to do what Graham suggested because counties administer elections in Georgia.”
“It sure looked like he was wanting to go down that road,” Raffensperger told the outlet.
Graham, however, called the claim “ridiculous,” saying he didn’t ask the secretary of state to toss ballots but did want to understand the state’s signature-matching requirements.
“The main issue for me is: How do you protect the integrity of mail-in voting, and how does signature verification work,” the senator said.
Even if you buy Raffensperger’s version of events — a difficult thing, given the “Rashomon”-like interpretations of the conversation — “appear[ing] to suggest” that “legally cast ballots” be thrown out isn’t actually saying ballots should be thrown out or directly interfering in the state’s recount process.
Cue the calls for Graham’s resignation anyway.
Washington Democrat Rep. Pramila Jayapal — the co-chairwoman of the House Progressive Caucus and a sort of honorary member of the far-left “squad” of leftist lawmakers — called for the senator’s resignation Tuesday, saying in a tweet that it’s “now been corroborated that he urged” Raffensperger to throw out votes.
(The “corroborated” part seems to refer to an aide who said he was on the line when Graham asked about whether the secretary of state had the power to throw out ballots, which isn’t nearly what she said. Indeed, according to Fox News, the aide said he “could see how Sen. Graham viewed it one way and Secretary Raffensperger viewed it one way, but our job in this state is to follow the law and follow the process,” which is far from incriminating.)
Lindsey Graham must resign.
It has now been corroborated that he urged the Secretary of State in Georgia to find a way to throw out legally cast ballots. There must be accountability and justice for this dangerous attack on our democracy.
— Rep. Pramila Jayapal (@RepJayapal) November 18, 2020
In a separate missive, Jayapal again called for Graham’s resignation, this time with a link to a Teen Vogue article that covered her original tweet.
First, Graham and Republicans fought like hell to suppress the vote. Then, Black, brown, and young voters organized and turned out in record numbers to win the state anyway. Now, he’s trying to get their legally cast votes thrown out.
He must resign. https://t.co/mw8XslMqRw
— Rep. Pramila Jayapal (@RepJayapal) November 18, 2020
Leaving aside the ouroboros-like nature of a politician tweeting about an article that covered her tweet, it’s never a welcome portent when your sourcing comes from Teen Vogue.
By this point, actual “squad” members were on the case — Reps. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Ilhan Omar of Minnesota:
Lindsey Graham attempted to commit voter fraud. He can’t get away with it. Actions result in consequences. This unethical and possibly illegal action from a sitting U.S. Senator demands a swift consequence. Thank you @RepJayapal for demanding it. https://t.co/LNUUMQeKww
— Rashida Tlaib (@RashidaTlaib) November 18, 2020
It’s time for Lindsey Graham to submit his resignation. https://t.co/XFzHmdV66I
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) November 18, 2020
This didn’t quite impress Graham, who tweeted, “I must be doing something right when the most radical liberal politicians and media pundits in America are calling for my resignation!”
I must be doing something right when the most radical liberal politicians and media pundits in America are calling for my resignation! pic.twitter.com/vPvMaWUV8q
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) November 18, 2020
“I will continue to try to find common ground where possible, but will not hesitate to vigorously oppose the radical domestic and foreign policy agenda of The Squad and other liberal critics,” he added.
“To those who are trying to silence me – you will fail miserably!”
I will continue to try to find common ground where possible, but will not hesitate to vigorously oppose the radical domestic and foreign policy agenda of The Squad and other liberal critics.
To those who are trying to silence me – you will fail miserably!
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) November 18, 2020
Graham is a popular punching bag for liberals, and this no doubt had a few swooning leftist small donors heading over to the ActBlue pages of Reps. Jayapal, Omar and Tlaib to drop a few dollars. Beyond that, this is wholly meaningless posturing.
Remember the barely concealed glee when polls showed Democratic candidate Jaime Harrison tied or within a few points of Graham in this year’s South Carolina Senate race? Graham ended up winning by 10.3 points.
Hope springs eternal, however, and adult Teen Vogue readers are no doubt shaking with anticipation that the subjective interpretation of a conversation with Georgia’s secretary of state will lead to him being chased out of the upper chamber.
Good luck with that.
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