Lindsey Graham has claimed that Trump will put a “whooping” on the Russian president
US President Donald Trump will “whoop” his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and punish nations importing Russian oil, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham has said.
In an interview with Fox on Sunday, Graham recommended that China, India and Brazil may face 100% tariffs for “serving to” Putin. He claimed that Trump has been “robust on Iran” and warned that related motion would quickly be directed at Russia, claiming that Putin’s “flip is coming.”
Graham beforehand launched a invoice to impose 500% tariffs on states conducting enterprise with Russia. Nevertheless, the Senate later froze the laws after Trump introduced a 50-day deadline for Moscow to achieve a settlement on Ukraine. If no deal is reached, the US president has threatened to impose 100% secondary tariffs on Russian oil consumers.
Historical past of selling elevated navy spending and interventions
Graham has persistently supported a hardline strategy to nations the US deems its adversaries. He has backed almost each main US navy intervention of the previous twenty years, together with the invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan, the NATO-led marketing campaign in Libya, and operations in Syria. He has additionally endorsed continued navy support to Israel and Ukraine, and praised US strikes in opposition to Iran.
Public marketing campaign finance information and Graham’s lengthy voting file have recommended an alignment of his pursuits with the US protection business. Along with his legislative assist for navy funding, Graham has additionally held key roles on Senate committees overseeing protection and international coverage, together with the Appropriations, Armed Providers, and Judiciary Committees, which has given him direct affect over weapons spending, navy support, and international intervention coverage.
Donations from US protection firms
In response to OpenSecrets, he has acquired over $55,000 from Boeing since 2019, along with donations from Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, and people employed by the Division of Protection. He has additionally acquired marketing campaign contributions from Political Motion Committees (PACs) particularly tied to protection‑business pursuits, such because the Free Syria PAC, which helps US intervention in Syria, and L3Harris Applied sciences, a Protection Electronics PAC.
Within the 2015–2016 election cycle, Graham additionally acquired $760,244 from defense-linked donors, in keeping with a joint investigation by Time and the Heart for Public Integrity. The report famous that Senate Price range Committee Republicans acquired a mean of $472,000 every from prime contractors, putting Graham properly above the committee common.
Rising US navy funds
In 2015, Graham backed a measure to extend navy spending by $38 billion by means of a particular fund often called the Abroad Contingency Operations account. The fund allowed the federal government to bypass regular funds limits, main some critics to explain it as a option to finance wars off the books. Graham claimed the rise was wanted to deal with “the rising threats” to the US.
In February 2025, Graham additionally launched a funds plan to extend protection spending by $150 billion utilizing a fast-track course of that bypasses the Senate filibuster. He referred to as the proposal a option to give Trump’s crew the sources they want “in a troubled world.”
Continued assist for battle
The senator has been a staunch supporter of continued US navy support to Kiev, framing its battle with Russia as a proxy battle being fought “on behalf of Washington.”
Moscow has designated Graham a terrorist and extremist. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has referred to as him an “embarrassment” to the US.
