‘That’s crazy stuff’: Graham says he didn’t flip on Trump in Georgia election investigation

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) – South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham said he was not indicted in the same Georgia investigation in which former President Donald Trump was charged earlier this week because he did not do anything wrong.

Graham was subpoenaed and testified as part of the Fulton County District Attorney’s probe into interference in the 2020 election.

In addition to Trump, 18 other people have been charged as a result of that investigation, and another 30 people were mentioned as unindicted co-conspirators.

Graham was not listed among either group, leading to some speculation he might have flipped and worked with prosecutors.

The South Carolina Republican denied that was what happened.

“I didn’t kill President Kennedy, and I’m not cooperating with — that’s crazy stuff,” he told reporters Thursday in Columbia, shaking his head. “I went, had my time, and I haven’t heard from them since, hadn’t talked to them since. I was well-treated, fairly treated, that’s it. That’s crazy stuff.”

Graham testified before a Georgia special grand jury last November after unsuccessfully trying to avoid testifying because of his role as a sitting U.S. senator.

Prosecutors wanted to question Graham about a phone call he made to Georgia’s secretary of state shortly after the 2020 presidential election.

Graham maintained Thursday he does not regret making that call, saying it, and calls to officials in other states, including Arizona, informed his eventual decision to vote to certify the election.

“And I would encourage senators to continue to do that. If you don’t reach out and try to find out what happened, it’s pretty hard to understand what you should do,” he said.

In this most recent indictment, Trump’s fourth since announcing his latest presidential bid, the former president is accused of working to overturn his 2020 defeat.

Graham does not expect this case will get to trial before the 2024 election.

“If he wins the presidency, I think this case probably goes away,” he said.

South Carolina’s senior senator has already announced his support for Trump, despite two South Carolinians running for president as well: former Gov. Nikki Haley and Republican Sen. Tim Scott.

But Graham can envision one of them on the ticket.

“I don’t think there’s a better choice for President Trump if he gets the nomination, for VP than Tim Scott,” he told reporters.

Trump has maintained a lead in polls among South Carolina Republican voters in recent months.

Graham said he views that as voters having a fondness for what Trump did while in office, instead of as a rebuke of Scott or Haley.

He reiterated Thursday he does not believe the 2020 presidential election was stolen, as Trump has repeatedly claimed, despite no widespread proof.

When asked if he would like the former president to stop fixating on the 2020 election as he campaigns, Graham responded he would.

“But that’s not going to happen. I’d like to be taller, but that’s not going to happen,” Graham said, adding he does believe Trump will need to start talking more about what he will do to fix problems the country now faces.

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