America First hardliners are viewing Sen. Lindsey Graham’s death as a dark opportunity to purge the Republican Party of its remaining interventionist wing and consolidate control over Donald Trump’s foreign policy agenda, Politico is reporting.
Graham’s sudden passing left a gaping hole in the GOP’s hawkish establishment — a void that anti-interventionist Trump allies are openly celebrating as a chance to eliminate their final formidable obstacle within the party.
Unlike most Republicans, Graham possessed a durable relationship with Trump, which he leveraged consistently to push aggressive foreign policy positions: unwavering support for Israel, robust aid to Ukraine, and advocacy for military strikes against Iran.
With him out of the way, Politico is reporting his right-wing critics see it as a “macabre opening” they need to quickly take advantage of.
“The McCain wing of the ‘America Last’ party has taken a mortal blow with the death of Graham and the demise of [Sen. Mitch] McConnell,” said Steve Bannon, Trump’s former White House strategist. “[GOP Sen. Tom] Cotton and the rest of the cabal have neither the gravitas nor the cunning of those two. The Oligarchs in Ukraine and Imperial Israel Proponents are curled up in the fetal position.”
According to Politico, a former Trump adviser is also excited about gaining more influence with Graham out of the way. Steve Cortes framed Graham’s death in nakedly transactional terms.
“Broadly, whatever the reason, if there are fewer voices in President Trump’s ear advocating for intervention that’s a great thing. It’s a great thing for our country, it’s a great thing for our movement, it’s a great thing for our party,” he said.
“Still, not all of the president’s America First allies see Graham’s death as a boon to their cause. Some instead frame him as a bridge between a still-hawkish Senate GOP conference and a more anti-interventionist White House — someone who was able to move between both camps in a way that actually helped the America First cause,” the report notes with Alex Gray, a former NSC official in Trump’s first term warning, “It actually hurts the America First movement if we don’t have establishment senators who are willing to give America First views a fair hearing, the way Graham did. He inserted kind of an interpretive bridge between the two sides. He did a lot for America First foreign policy.”