Sen. Lindsey Graham slammed for ‘game on' tweet after Israel bombs Iran
South Carolina Republican Senator Lindsey Graham is facing widespread criticism for a tweet he posted following the Israeli strikes on Iran.
'Game on. Pray for Israel,' he wrote on Thursday night.
Israel struck bases and nuclear sites in an attack more severe than previous attacks on Iran, with President Donald Trump pushing the country to agree to fresh restrictions on its nuclear program as additional strikes could be 'more brutal.'
'Game? Your soul is lost,' said broadcaster Keith Olbermann in response.
'I have no doubt that you are incredibly turned on right now, Senator. Iranians, who are caught in this mess, deserve your prayers too but I know we are just an afterthought. You're a disgrace,' said journalist Yashar Ali.
'Game? You're disgusting,' Owen Shroyer added.
Israel killed a number of Iran's security chiefs, dealing a severe blow to the country's chain of command. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has described the attack as a way to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon, which is seen as an existential threat by the Israelis.
'A game? You piece of s***,' wrestling reporter Sean Ross Sapp wrote to Graham.
Meghan McCain, the daughter of the late Arizona Senator John McCain, whom Graham admired, added to the criticism, writing, 'It's not a f****** game Lindsey.'
'It isn't a game, Senator. You confirmed a talkshow host SecDef who texts strike plans on unsecured apps,' said Heath Mayo, the founder of the conservative group Principles First. 'You supported a President who thinks Ukraine caused Putin's invasion. You should pray for all of us. We're going to need all the help we can get with amateurs in charge.'
'It's not a game, dip****,' attorney Ron Filipkowski added.
Meanwhile, Pennsylvania Democratic Senator John Fetterman called for Israel to continue 'wiping out Iranian leadership.'
'Our commitment to Israel must be absolute and I fully support this attack,' he wrote on X late on Thursday. 'Keep wiping out Iranian leadership and the nuclear personnel. We must provide whatever is necessary—military, intelligence, weaponry—to fully back Israel in striking Iran.'
While writer Tim Shorrock called Fetterman 'The drooling War Maniac from Pennsylvania,' singer/songwriter John Ondrasik called the senator 'a Lion in a sea of Lemmings' and former White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer said Fetterman 'is amazing.'
'His support of Israel used to be standard for almost every D in Washington. Now he's a lonely voice, but he remains an amazingly powerful and inspiring voice,' he added.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

24 minutes ago
After Minnesota shooting, some states are more tightly guarding officials' personal information
LOS ANGELES -- Lawmakers in some states are moving to delete their home addresses from online directories and Wisconsin legislators are seeking added security for a session this week after one Minnesota legislator was killed and another wounded in their suburban Minneapolis homes last weekend in what Gov. Tim Walz described as a targeted political attack. Vance Boelter is in federal custody facing murder and stalking charges in the shooting death of former Democratic House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark. Authorities say he also shot and wounded Sen. John Hoffman and his wife Yvette. Boelter, 57, also faces state murder charges. Authorities said Boelter had a list of dozens of state and federal elected officials in Minnesota and meticulous notes on the homes and people he targeted early Saturday. He also stopped by the homes of two other legislators that night, according to police. Authorities say he found their addresses in a variety of internet searches. The Minnesota Legislature's website lists the addresses of members' offices in the state capital of St. Paul, not their home addresses. On Saturday, the North Dakota Legislature's staff agency removed lawmakers' addresses from their biographical webpages as a result of the targeted attacks in Minnesota, Legislative Council Director John Bjornson said. Most North Dakota lawmakers opt to give a home, business or postal box address on their webpage, where the public also can find their email addresses and phone numbers. Removing addresses of elected officials is a difficult decision because they have to be approachable, open and transparent, said Burleigh County Sheriff Kelly Leben, whose county is home to North Dakota's capital city. 'I think it's a balancing act between being a public official and the safety of myself and my family,' the elected county sheriff said. All home addresses for New Mexico legislators were also removed from the Statehouse website as an immediate precaution, said Shawna Casebier, director of the Legislature's legal office. Personal information on the website already had been limited at the discretion of individual lawmakers in the aftermath of drive-by shootings at the homes of four Democratic state and local lawmakers in Albuquerque in 2022 and 2023. In Colorado, at least 31 elected officials have filed requests to remove their personal contact information from a public-facing state campaign finance database called TRACER, which was briefly taken down Saturday so those requests could be fulfilled. 'We did so out of an abundance of caution for the safety of elected officials in an unprecedented political climate,' Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold said in a statement. The Colorado development was first reported by Axios. Lawmakers in Wisconsin requested additional security for when the state Assembly meets on Wednesday, said Luke Wolff, spokesperson for Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos. Wolff did not detail what was requested or what changes may be made. The Wisconsin Capitol is one of the most open in the country, with public access seven days a week, no metal detectors, screening checkpoints or security badges required to gain entry. There are galleries in both the Senate and Assembly where the public can view legislative debate. Even before the Minnesota shooting, states in recent years have stepped up efforts to shield the personal information of officials in response to high-profile attacks. One day before the Minnesota killings, Oregon lawmakers passed a bill that would prohibit the Oregon Secretary of State from making the residential addresses of those associated with a candidates' campaign committee viewable by the public on its electronic filing system. The campaign filings would still be viewable online, but home addresses would be redacted, unless the person asks the Secretary of State's office to publish it. A public records request would need to be filed to obtain such addresses. Louisiana lawmakers passed a bill last week that adds statewide elected officials and legislators to the list of people who can ask that their personal information be removed from public records and the internet. Certain judges were already on the list. Officials can seek to have home addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, date of birth, marital status, school or daycare of their child, their place of worship or employment location of their spouse removed. Under current law, if person does not comply with the removal request, they can be sued and face up to 90 days in prison or $1,000 fine for the misdemeanor. The measure still needs final approval from Gov. Jeff Landry, one of the Louisiana officials whose private information would be protected. Georgia legislators passed a law earlier this year to require that home addresses of candidates who file campaign finance reports, including themselves, be redacted from by the state Ethics Commission from public view. The action came after a number of Georgia officials were targeted by swatting incidents in December 2023. Lawmakers also passed a second law which removes the personal phone number, home address, and property or tax records of a judge or their spouse from public view. Records covered include voter registration and corporation records. The Illinois State Board of Elections stopped publishing the street addresses of candidates for political office on its website last year, spokesperson Matt Dietrich said. Lawmakers had raised concerns after protestors picketed the home of Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, the state librarian, over legislation he pushed through the General Assembly that would cut state funding to libraries that ban books. Candidates' addresses remain on elections board documents that are no longer published on the web but accessible via public records request. In 2020, a gunman posing as a delivery driver shot and killed the 20-year-old son of U.S. District Judge Esther Salas in New Jersey and injured her husband at their family home. The state legislature passed a law later that year by that exempted the home addresses of current or retired judges, prosecutors and law enforcement officers from disclosure under public records laws. The measure, called Daniel's Law in honor of the judge's son, also allowed officials to ask websites to remove their home addresses. Maryland enacted a law in 2024 preventing individuals from publishing judges' personal information online after a circuit court judge was shot by a man hours after the judge ruled against him in a divorce case. Judges can submit requests to government entities and private websites to remove information like phone numbers, social security numbers, and personal emails.


San Francisco Chronicle
29 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Israeli strike on Iranian state TV fills studio with dust and debris during live broadcast
Dust and debris filled an Iranian state television studio and an anchor rushed off camera Monday when an Israeli strike hit during a live broadcast, an hour after Israel issued a warning for the area of Tehran where the station is located. Sahar Emami, an anchor at the Islamic Republic of Iran News Network, was seen hurrying off-camera as the screen behind her cut out. People on set were heard saying 'Allahu akbar," the Arabic phrase for God is great. The broadcast quickly switched to pre-recorded programs. Soon, Emami came back live from another studio and was seen speaking with another anchor. Images showed smoke and flames in the sky. The station later said that the building was hit by four bombs. Israel's defense minister took immediate credit for the attack. 'The Iranian regime's propaganda and incitement broadcasting authority was attacked by the IDF after a widespread evacuation of the area's residents,' Israel Katz said in a statement. 'We will strike the Iranian dictator everywhere.' Esmaeil Baqaei, spokesman for the Iranian foreign minister, condemned the strike, calling on the international community to demand justice from Israel for its attack on the media. 'The world is watching: targeting Iran's news agency #IRIB's office during live broadcast is a wicked act of war crime,' Baqaei wrote on X. Videos circulating on social media show that the IRINN building, known as 'the glass building,' is still burning. There has been no official report on casualties from the incident. An anchor said on air that a few colleagues had been injured, but that their families should not be worried. An hour earlier, the Israeli military had issued an evacuation warning affecting up to 330,000 people in a part of central Tehran that includes the country's state TV and police headquarters, as well as three large hospitals. The IDF has issued similar evacuation warnings for civilians in parts of Gaza and Lebanon ahead of strikes. The warning came on the fourth day of the conflict, when the Israeli military claimed it had achieved air superiority above the Iranian capital and could fly over the city without facing major threats. Iran, meanwhile, announced it had launched some 100 missiles and vowed further retaliation for sweeping attacks on its military and nuclear infrastructure that have killed at least 224 people in the country since Friday. So far, 24 people have been killed in Israel and more than 500 injured, Israeli officials said, after Iran launched more than 370 missiles and hundreds of drones. According to the U.N. and CPJ records, Israel's campaign in Gaza has killed at least 173 journalists and media workers since October 2023.


Newsweek
33 minutes ago
- Newsweek
Lindsey Graham Wants Trump to Go 'All In' on Iran as Security Council Meets
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina has called for a regime change in Iran, saying President Donald Trump should go "all in" to help Israel combat Iran's nuclear threat. Why It Matters Israel on Friday launched attacks against Iran's capital city of Tehran in what it called a "preemptive strike" and warned its citizens of retaliatory bombings from Iran. While attending the Group of Seven summit on Monday, Trump announced plans to cut his trip short, telling reporters, "I have to be back early — for obvious reasons." Multiple media outlets including Fox News and CNN have reported that Trump has asked for a National Security Council meeting to convene in the Situation Room upon his return to Washington, D.C. Newsweek reached out to the White House Monday night for comment. Tensions in the Middle East have escalated as Iranian Defense Minister General Aziz Nasirzadeh previously warned that Iran could attack U.S. bases if nuclear talks break down with Trump's administration or if hostilities continue mounting. What To Know While speaking with Fox News' Sean Hannity Monday night on the strikes, Graham said, in part, "So here is the task at hand. Be all in, President Trump, in helping Israel eliminate the nuclear threat. If we need to provide bombs to Israel, provide bombs. If we need to fly planes with Israel, do joint operations. But here's the bigger question, wouldn't the world be better off if the Ayatollahs went away and replaced by something better? Wouldn't Iran be better off?" Taking to X, formerly Twitter, Graham also said, "No one can say that President @realDonaldTrump has not tried to seek peace regarding Ukraine-Russia and Israel-Iran. He has gone the extra mile and I appreciate that. However, you have to have willing partners to make peace. Iran played the same old game with the wrong guy. God bless Israel, God bless the United States and God bless President Trump." This is a developing story that will be updated with additional information.