Lindsey Graham is fully aware that Donald Trump inspectors general purge was illegal — he just doesn’t care.
The senator appeared on Meet the Press on Sunday and discussed the president’s firing of 17 crucial department watchdogs in the middle of the night, when the law states that they require a 30-day advance notice before being terminated.
“It’s a very common thing to do,” Trump told reporters in Florida. “I don’t know them … but some people thought that some were unfair or some were not doing their job. It’s a very standard thing to do.” Trump does know some of these people, as he fired multiple inspectors general who were appointed during his first term.
Graham’s media appearance just served to reaffirm the president’s lie.
“You know, I’m not overly worried about [the firings],” Graham said. “It’s not the first time people have come in and put their team in—when you win an election, you need people in your administration that reflect your views. So I’m not really worried about that.”
“But very quickly, the law says he’s supposed to give 30 days’ notice. He didn’t do that,” said host Kristen Welker. “Do you think he violated the law?”
“No, he didn’t. No, well, technically, yeah. But he has the authority to do it,” Graham said, waffling shamelessly. “So I’m not, you know, losing a whole lot of sleep that he wants to change the personnel out. I just want to make sure that he gets off to a good start. I think he has. I’m very supportive of what he wants to do with America.”
Republican leadership has made it very clear that they’ll be dutifully falling in line behind Trump, even if it means turning long-held rules into mere suggestions.
The post Even Lindsey Graham Thinks Trump’s Friday Night Mass Purge Was Illegal appeared first on New Republic.
