Lindsey Graham on Radical Islam: ‘I’m Going to Stand Up to These Thugs’

DES MOINES, Iowa—In an interview with Sen. Lindsey Graham, the South Carolina Republican says he’ll announce his intentions about a presidential campaign either next month or in June. But whenever he decides, Graham has a clear message for voters: “Security through strength.”

>>> Update: Graham declared his candidacy for president June 1 in his hometown of Central, S.C., saying: “I want to be president to defeat the enemies trying to kill us, not just penalize them or criticize them or contain them, but defeat them.  … I want to be president to meet our problems head on.”

Graham, 59, has positioned himself to focus on foreign policy, a subject in his wheelhouse and one that is expected to dominate the 2016 presidential landscape.

In his visit to Iowa for the Faith & Freedom Coalition Conference on April 25, expect Graham to talk tough when it comes to radical Islam. In his interview with The Daily Signal, he didn’t mince words.

“Ronald Reagan said, ‘Peace through strength.’ You’ll never have peace with radical Islam. They will never accommodate our way of life because me and you have one thing in common they hate: We reject their way of worshipping God … they hate you because you won’t bend to their will.

“They want a master religion for the world like the Nazis wanted a master race and I’m going to stand up to these thugs.”

This report has been modified and updated.