GOP civil war continues: Lindsey Graham vows “holy hell” against Donald Trump
Over the past several days Donald Trump and the Republican Party have begun threatening, punishing and retaliating against each other in escalating fashion – in what can only be described as a burgeoning intramural civil between the GOP and Trump. The latest to go hard after Trump is Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, who has long been no fan of Trump, and is now vowing there will be “holy hell to pay.”
Since Trump began publicly attacking Attorney General Jeff Sessions this week, a number of his former Senate Republican colleagues have begun pushing back against Trump in retaliation. The list has included Orrin Hatch, Chuck Grassley, and Lisa Murkowski among others. Now Lindsey Graham is joining the fray, defending Sessions and threatening Trump.
Graham told CNN that “This effort to basically marginalize and humiliate the attorney general is not going over well in the Senate,” (link), while vowing to push legislation that would allow a judge to overrule Trump if he fires Special Counsel Robert Mueller. The more Trump continues his war against Sessions, the more the GOP continues to push back against him on a number of issues and controversies.
Donald Trump is continuing to try to find a way to fire Mueller, as he (mistakenly) thinks that doing so would end the investigation into his election collusion with Russia. Trump believes that if he fires Jeff Sessions and his deputy, he can then appoint a new Attorney General who will be willing to fire Mueller. But Trump has miscalculated in two ways. Grassley has made clear that he won’t even allow a hearing for any new AG nominee. It’s also clear that Trump underestimated the Republican Senate’s willingness to go to war with him this week over his ongoing attacks on their ally Sessions. And it’s still only Thursday. If you find Palmer Report valuable, make a donation.
