I'm S.

E.

Cupp.

Welcome to unfiltered new audio of the south Carolina senator and sometimes friends, sometimes foe of former president Donald trump is out.

Thanks to tapes shared by new york times reporters, Alex Burns and Jonathan martin.

The tapes take us back to January 6, 2021.

The day of the infamous insurrection at the Capitol.

Graham was decidedly optimistic.

That is optimistic that it would be a turning point for the country will actually come out of this thing.

Stronger moments like this reset could take a while for people to calm down.

People are I don't want to be associated with that.

This is a group within a group and what this does that there'd be a rallying effect for a while for the country that says we're better than this.

He went on to criticize former President Donald trump for his role in inciting the mob at the capitol that day saying you know, he plays the tv game and he went too far here.

That rally didn't help talking about you know, primary in us and he created a sense of revenge.

Now of course the country did not come together after January six, we did not come out of this thing, stronger people did not calm down and his party did not say we're better than this republicans have by and large, overwhelmingly continued with trump's lie That the 2020 election was rigged and some have painted the insurrectionists as patriots but this revelation is just another baffling waypoint on graham's circular journey whose inconsistent voice on trump has made him both a devoted water carrier and one of his most vocal critics.

Let me take you for a brief but bumpy ride.

During the 2016 presidential campaign.

Graham said Trump was the jackass.

He's a race baiting xenophobic religious bigot.

At the end of the day, he would be the most flawed nominee in the history of the Republican Party.

Yet in Trump's first two years in office, Graham votes with him 90% of the time In his final two years.

About 80% of the time he's doing a hell of a job as commander in chief.

Graham votes to acquit Trump in his first impeachment trial for soliciting a foreign government for help influencing a U.

S.

Election Calling impeachment partisan nonsense.

I will do everything I can to make it die quickly when Trump loses his reelection bid in 2020 and pushes the lie that his election was stolen.

Graham reportedly privately mocks those efforts and lack of evidence as suitable for 3rd grade.

Then January 6, 2021, in the wake of the Capitol insurrection.

Graham delivered a powerful speech on the Senate floor denouncing the mob saying is count me out enough is enough.

He was emphatic in rejecting the lie that trump is still pushing saying that without hesitation the election was not rigged, joe biden and Kamala Harris are lawfully elected And will become the president and the vice president of the United States on January the 20th.

Graham also said this how embarrassed and disgusted I am that the United States capitol could be taken over by domestic terrorists.

While we're in session, it seemed trump's fate with Graham was sealed, but all would be forgiven.

Apparently, just weeks later, Graham went down to mar a Lago to spend two days golfing and schmoozing with trump.

He then served as an informal adviser to his defense team during trump's second impeachment trial in february In March of 2021.

He tells axios donald trump was my friend before the riot and I'm trying to keep a relationship with him after the riot.

I still consider him a friend.

In September of 2021.

He says at a rally that he hopes Trump runs again in 2024.

In January of 2022, he criticizes Trump on CBS News for saying he'd pardon insurrectionists if re elected.

I think it's inappropriate.

I don't want to reinforce that, defiling the capital was okay of course, by supporting Trump to this day, including in his potential 2024 run for president.

Graham is indirectly reinforcing just that narrative that trump's lies about the election which made storming of the capitol a justifiable act.

Too many many republicans should be rewarded with a second term folks like lindsey Graham and minority leader kevin McCarthy and Fox News hosts who as we know from texts and tapes knew how bad january 6th was.

They could have moved their party away from trump's dark and ugly politics and rhetoric.

And instead, they followed the far right into even darker places.

Shame on them.

Okay, that's it for me.

See you next week.