GOP presidential hopeful Lindsey Graham vowed Saturday to “rebuild” the nation’s defenses and send more of the U.S. military overseas to wipe out potential terrorist threats against the nation.
The 2016 GOP presidential hope said terrorist organizations are stronger than they have ever been since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
“If I get to be president, we are going after these bastards,” Mr. Graham told the activists that converged on Washington for the annual Values Voter Summit. “We are going back over there and we are going to kill as many of them as we can find.”
Mr. Graham has focused his campaign on pushing issues of national security and foreign policy to the forefront of the race.
He has been a vocal critic of the Obama administration’s foreign policy and Hillary Clint’s tenure as Secretary of State, arguing they have been weak on global affairs and hurt the nation’s relationships with some of its traditional allies - most notably Israel.
Mr. Graham’s message, though, has not yet resonated in polls, as he is running at the back of the pack.
He said he would expand the U.S. Army to 500,000 personnel, increase the U.S. Navy fleet to 350 ships and modernize the Air Force.
“I am not looking for a fair fight,” he said, eliciting applause from the crowd.
• Seth McLaughlin can be reached at smclaughlin@washingtontimes.com.
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