Over in the “Trump Indicted” thread, @Procrustus asks
Of all the crazy conspiracy theories out there, the only one that makes sense to me is that Trump has something on Senator Graham. Something really bad.
which got me to thinking, What does Trump have on him?
Also, whatever it is, it may actually come out when the rat gets desperate enough in his corner to bite. So speculate away.
I’m guessing it has to do with gay sex photos, but it could be anything really to incite the maddened levels of sycophancy we see Graham practicing.
MODS: if this seems more suitable for the Games forum, please move, but i suspect it’s too political to be posted there.
I don’t think it fits in Games, but I think it is too speculative to be posted in P&E. No one can do anything but speculate, and that’s the type of thread that generally ends up in the Pit.
If that’s how it goes, expect to be offered the choice of it being closed or moved to the Pit.
Nothing. Graham is playing politics and is far from the first politician to change their opinion based on the whims of the voters. It’s simply delusional to think that blackmail is going on.
More speculation, but what I’ve heard supporting the ‘Kompromat’ theory: Graham famously railed against trump before he became president, calling him dangerous, a ‘kook’ and all manner of insults. He did not immediately jump on board the trump train after he won the election. It wasn’t until after he accepted an early 2017 invite from trump to golf with him that he suddenly did a hard 180 flip and became the total trump toady that he is to this day.
The theory is that at some point on the course, trump presented him with the incriminating evidence he had on Graham. Either that, or trump was just so charming and convincing of his grand vision for America that he won Graham over on merit…
Or, Graham realized that whatever his personal opinion of Trump is, the people who butter his biscuit by voting for him are clearly in love with Agent Orange and should be pandered to if Graham wants his biscuit to continue getting buttered.
I’ve heard rumors about Graham’s sexual preferences, and while that doesn’t matter to me, it might be a deal breaker for some of his deep-pocketed, Christian supporters. Mind you these are just rumors, but if Trump was able to substantiate them, and Lindsey didn’t want that information released, Trump could make his jump as high as he wanted.
I think this is the most credible answer. When Graham criticized Trump, his ratings began sinking faster than an anvil. He turned his rhetoric around tout de suite. His ratings rose accordingly, and he was reelected.
Graham was in the Air Force from 1982-1989, which was not a gay-friendly time in the military. He’s been in Congress since 1994 (House and Senate) and has faced multiple challengers in almost every primary race. I refuse to believe that in all that time, all of his opponents were so inept that not one of them could uncover a genuine salacious scandal and make it stick.
Really, look how fast Bill Clinton, John Edwards, and Donald Trump were exposed.
I think either scenario is equally plausible, honestly. I can easily see trump having the means (possibly with the help of his buddy Putin, the King of Kompromat) and the will to blackmail someone, and I can also easily believe that Graham is simply a spineless politician whose ideals and beliefs only hold up so far as they are supported by his constituency.
The thing that tips me over into the Kompromat category is the speed and intensity with which Graham jumps out of the gate to defend Trump passionately (with literal tears in his eyes last night), especially after his derogatory remarks about him early on. Other GOP hacks do the same, but less quickly and less passionately, almost cookie-cutter obligatory talking points, but not Graham. He’s first in line and no one not named Trump matches his passion. There’s something more than just GOP yacking going on.
Move it where you will. I agree, it doesn’t fit neatly anywhere, so if that means the Pit, it means the Pit, though I’d like it to retain the spirit of a guessing game wherever it goes.
I’m watching it. So long as responses remain respectful and on topic, we can let it run in P&E. If it tips into gratuitous off-topic stuff, off to the Pit it goes. Fair?
Lindsey Graham the politician is like a bad improv actor who on occasion has to break character to keep himself tethered to reality, like when he tapped out during the Jan. 6 special session. He’s not as committed as the true method actors like Trump, Greene, or De Santis.
Graham’s MO is to suckle onto anyone who has influence and try to influence them.
He went too far with Trump but, in general, his habit didn’t change dramatically with Trump. He also tried to do it with Biden, right after he won office, but was rebuffed.
slicealone, two thumbs up to that. The speed and intensity of Lindsay’s flip was astounding. I have a personal theory that he is being blackmailed, but it’s something much worse than gay photos, because it’s not really a secret that he’s gay. I won’t share what I think because I have no proof, but his behavior does seem like something much more than the usual political opportunism.
It is well known in Columbia circles that Graham is just barely closeted gay man and his constituents don’t really care to moralize over it because he gets them what they want.
As for ‘Kompromat’ on Graham, it is completely unnecessary. Like many leading Republicans, Graham has shown himself to have pretty much unlimited flexibility when it comes to compromising whatever principles he might have held, and he correctly saw Trump as the leading pony in the race. He’s far from the only person to be insulted by and opposed to Trump only to switch his tune when supporting him became obligatory for the proto-fascist party that the GOP is rapidly becoming, and he’s made quite a meal out of being Trump’s pet gospeller. As @hajario and @Babale have said, Graham is an astute politician who knows how to pick sides and shift back and forth with the deftness of a ballet dancer.
And, further, Graham doesn’t care, in the slightest, that this means that he can say something one day, with what seems and sounds like absolute vehemence and conviction, and then completely contradict himself the next day (again with theatrical vehemence and conviction).
AFAICT, he has no particular principles or positions, other than to say and do whatever it takes to keep himself in a position of power and visibility, and a willingness to shift in whatever direction he thinks the wind is blowing on a particular day.
Does Trump have something on him? Maybe; we may never know. As already noted, rumors of Graham being a closeted gay man are nothing new, and I think that Trump may just be leveraging Graham’s previously-established windsock behavior.
If Trump had something on Graham, he’d be totally incapable of not blabbing about it. In addition, if the information was out there, a lot of other people would have it too. We would have known about it years ago
Given two options for his change of attitude from “Trump is a hateful bigot who will destroy the Republican party” to “I love Trump with all my heart”:
Graham accidentally killed a gay teen prostitute during a vigorous sex game, and Trump threatened to expose that.
Loving Trump is better for his polling numbers.
I’d have more respect for #1. Prostitute-killer-Graham at least has some sort of ethical compass and probably feels bad about supporting an unfit baboon for President. Poll-maximizing-Graham is apparently fine with a horrid unfit President as long as Graham is OK.
