Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) made it crystal clear on Sunday that he wants President Donald Trump to violently enact regime change in Iran, where nationwide protests against the country’s rulers have left hundreds dead.
“If I were you, Mr. President, I would kill the leadership that are killing the people,” Graham said on Maria Bartiromo’s Fox News program “Sunday Morning Futures.”
“You gotta end this,” added the longtime Trump ally, who for years has advocated for military action against Iran.
Graham argued that forcibly removing Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, from power (as happened to Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro following a U.S.-led military operation recently) would put an end to what he called Iran’s “state-sponsored terrorism” across the Middle East.
He also slammed the ayatollah as a “modern-day Hitler” and “religious Nazi.”
Trump has in recent days escalated his rhetoric against the Iranian regime and threatened retaliation if protesters are killed.
The U.S. president is the “Ronald Reagan-plus of our time,” the lawmaker added.
