Lindsey Graham Behind Trump’s Decisions?
A growing debate inside the Republican Party is unfolding after Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.) publicly criticized Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), accusing him of playing a key role in reshaping President Donald Trump’s approach toward Venezuela.
Paul’s remarks come amid heightened scrutiny of the administration’s recent actions in South America, which some conservatives view as a departure from Trump’s long-standing opposition to foreign nation-building and extended overseas involvement.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Paul said Graham has been instrumental in pushing the president toward a more aggressive posture, one that Paul argues runs counter to the “America First” principles that energized millions of voters.
“For years, President Trump has said regime change doesn’t work,” Paul noted, pointing to repeated public statements made by Trump during his first term and subsequent campaigns. “There are countless clips of him saying it leads to chaos. Now suddenly it’s being framed as different because it’s in our hemisphere.”
Paul warned that this shift could signal a broader return to interventionist policies that many conservatives believed had been rejected by the Republican base.
Graham, meanwhile, has made no secret of his dissatisfaction with the administration’s previous reluctance to pursue leadership change in Venezuela. Last month, following a classified briefing with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Graham openly questioned the lack of a long-term strategy.
“If it’s not the policy to remove Maduro, it should be,” Graham said at the time. “And if Maduro is gone, what happens next? The American people deserve clarity.”
Following Maduro’s capture over the weekend, Graham escalated his rhetoric, suggesting the development could trigger broader political changes throughout the region.
In a brief social media post, the South Carolina senator wrote, “Free Cuba,” signaling his belief that Venezuela’s developments could weaken allied communist regimes.
During a Sunday evening interview on Fox News, Graham went further, predicting that Cuba’s leadership is nearing collapse.
“There’s no way the communist system in Cuba survives after this,” Graham said. “It’s not a question of if, but when.”
However, not all conservatives are on board with the direction of U.S. policy.
Several prominent figures aligned with the MAGA movement have expressed concern that the administration may be drifting away from its core promises of restraint abroad and focus at home.
Former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), a longtime Trump ally, said voters supported the president because they believed he would prioritize domestic security, economic stability, and border enforcement over foreign conflicts.
“Our responsibility is to the American people first,” Greene said. “Our neighborhood is right here in the United States, not thousands of miles away.”
The disagreement highlights a familiar divide within the GOP—between foreign-policy hawks advocating assertive global leadership and grassroots conservatives wary of costly international commitments.
As the administration moves forward, the handling of Venezuela could become a defining test of whether President Trump’s foreign policy remains rooted in America First principles or evolves in response to pressure from Washington’s traditional power centers.
