Lindsey Graham Slams Trump for Syria Withdrawal

WASHINGTON — In a rare attack on U.S. President Donald Trump's policies, a senior Republican senator said Monday that Trump's withdrawal from Syria is "a big win for Iran and ISIS."

South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, a leading voice within his party on foreign policy and usually a very strong supporter of Trump, made the comment during an interview with the pro-Trump Fox News network.

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Graham later took to Twitter to announce that lawmakers will introduce bipartisan sanctions against Turkey if it decides to invade Syria. Graham said that he and other lawmakers will "call for their suspension from NATO if they attack Kurdish forces who assisted the U.S. in the destruction of the ISIS Caliphate."

Earlier Monday, Graham called the explanation provided by the White House for the withdrawal "the biggest lie told by this administration," because unlike what the White House is officially saying, Graham said the Islamic State terror group has not yet been fully defeated.

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Graham urged Trump to "reverse course" from the decision, something that does not seem likely at the moment.

Sen. Marco Rubio (Republican of Florida) also piled criticism on Trump's decision, saying: "If reports about US retreat in #Syria are accurate, the Trump administration has made a grave mistake that will have implications far beyond Syria."