It would be a "disaster for the future of the Republican Party" if the party in the House joins with Democrats to oust House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, Sen. Lindsey Graham said Sunday.
"The only way he loses his job is if a handful of Republicans join up with the Democratic Party to fire him," the South Carolina Republican told CBS News's "Face the Nation." "That's not going to happen. Kevin has the overwhelming confidence of his membership."
McCarthy, he added, is the "right guy at the right time," considering a three-part Senate bill that is coming soon that will provide funding for Ukraine, border security, and disaster relief.
His comments came after Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., said Sunday he would try to remove McCarthy, R-Calif., from his leadership position this week after the speaker relied on Democrat support to pass legislation Saturday to avoid a government shutdown. The legislation did not include funding for Ukraine.
Graham said that McCarthy will help Ukraine, "but he's telling everybody in the country, including me, you better send something over for the border for me to help Ukraine, and he's right to make that demand."
Graham voted for the short-term deal, saying he agreed despite the lack of money for the border and Ukraine because "we had to keep the government open."
"We've got 45 days to fix both problems," he said. "There will come out of the Senate soon a bill that will have three legs to it. Disaster funding. We need more, not less. Robust funding for Ukraine to get them through the next fighting season. Not $24 billion. And a major effort to secure our border. I believe there's bipartisan support in the Senate to do both, and it will go to the House hopefully in the next 30 days."
Graham said he does think there is support from Democrats for major border security reform, but the legislation must be attached to funding for Ukraine.
"To those who say we need to fix our border, you're right," he said. "Those who say we need to help Ukraine, you're right. To those who say we need to do the border and not Ukraine, you're wrong. The vast majority of Senate Republicans would support Ukraine funding, border security, and disaster aid."
Meanwhile, the White House reportedly told GOP leadership it doesn't have enough funding for Ukraine to make it through the 45 days of the CR, and Graham said he does not believe that.
"This same White House says we don't need F-16s, we don't need HIMARs or tanks," said Graham. "I've lost confidence in their evaluation of Ukraine. We have allies. They can help for 6 weeks. The allies have spent more money in Ukraine than we have and when you hear otherwise, it's not true. I'm not worried about the next six weeks. I'm worried about next year."
The Senate, he added, will produce "$60 billion or $70 billion, not $24 billion, to get them through next year."
In addition, "we will have a border security measure that is strong, and we will have additional disaster aid because the nation needs it. We are going to do those three things. I'm hoping our House colleagues will react to it."
Meanwhile, when asked if Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has lost control of his caucus over funding for Ukraine, Graham said the Kentucky Republican has been "great" on the topic, but he has picked a formula that will lose votes for aid.
"To expect people like me and others to vote for Ukraine aid without border security is unreasonable," said Graham. "Mitch made a miscalculation. He's been great on Ukraine. I told him a thousand times the key to Ukraine funding is to deal with a broken border. 107,000 Americans have died from fentanyl poisoning from fentanyl coming across the southern border. We haven't lost one soldier in Ukraine. So America is being invaded from a broken southern border. To my Democratic colleagues, you need to take border security seriously."
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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