Donald Trump 'a wrecking ball' for GOP: Senator Lindsey Graham
US Senator Lindsey Graham, a GOP presidential contender, says the Republican Party must reject Donald Trump’s views on immigration as those of a “demagogue” and “a wrecking ball,” that is threatening to dismantle the party.
On Sunday, Graham told CNN that Trump's recent denunciation of most immigrants as criminals represents "a defining moment" for the party that Republicans must reject or they will face losing “the moral authority to govern”.
During his presidential campaign announcement on June 16, billionaire businessman and reality television star Trump emphasized the need to curtail immigration from the southern border and slammed Mexican immigrants for "bringing crime" to the US.
“[Mexico is] sending people that have lots of problems, and they are bringing those problems to us. They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists,” Trump said.
On Friday and Saturday, Trump addressed large crowds in Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Phoenix.
Addressing thousands of supporters in Arizona, Trump said, “This has become a movement. The silent majority is back, and we’re going to take our country back … the word is getting out that we have to stop illegal immigration.”
Senator Graham said on Sunday that "I'm very worried where we're headed as a party. I don't think this is the way to get the Latino vote.”
"If we don't reject this way of thinking –– clearly, without any ambiguity –– we'll have lost our way, [and] we'll have lost the moral authority, in my view, to govern this great nation," the South Carolina lawmaker noted.
“We have to reject this demagogue. If we don’t we will lose and we will deserve to lose,” he stated.
“After 10 years of working on illegal immigrants, I’ve come to conclude that most illegal immigrants are decent, hardworking people,” he noted.
In spite of criticism from Republicans and companies threatening to cut business ties to Trump, he has defended his controversial comments.
He told Fox News on July 3 that the alleged shooting death of a 32-year-old woman by an immigrant in San Francisco was one more example of why America must secure its borders.
“This is an absolutely disgraceful situation and I am the only one that can fix it. Nobody else has the guts to even talk about it,” he said.
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