Lindsey Graham Slams Zelensky over Refusal to Resign
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) criticized Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for refusing to resign after the Oval Office incident.
In a post on X, Graham pointed out that until Ukraine has an election, âno one has a voiceâ there.
Grahamâs post came in response to a reporter telling Zelensky that Graham had suggested that he resign after making several disrespectful comments during his meeting in the Oval Office with Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
In response, Zelensky described Lindsey Graham as âa very good guy,â adding that he could âgive himâ Ukrainian citizenship and âthen his voice will start to gain weight.â
âUnfortunately, until there is an election, no one has a voice in Ukraine,â Graham wrote.
As Breitbart Newsâs Katherine Hamilton reported on Friday, during a meeting with Trump, Vance, and Rubio in the Oval Office, Zelensky criticized European governments, as well as past presidential administrations in the United States for their failure âto stopâ Russian President Vladimir Putin âafter he annexed and occupied Crimea in 2014.â Zelenskyâs criticism came after Vance had suggested âengaging in diplomacyâ as the âpath to peace.â
âWhat kind of diplomacy, JD, you are speaking about? What do you mean?â Zelensky questioned.
âIâm talking about the kind of diplomacy thatâs going to end the destruction of your country,â Vance answered.
When Zelensky attempted to dismiss Vanceâs idea of diplomacy, Vance informed him that it was âdisrespectfulâ for Zelensky to âcome into the Oval Office to try to litigate this in front of the American media.â
âWith respect, I think itâs disrespectful for you to come into the Oval Office to try to litigate this in front of the American media,â Vance said. âRight now, you guys are going around and forcing conscripts to the front lines because you have manpower problems. You should be thanking the president for trying to bring an end to this conflict.â
Zelensky went on to question if Vance had been to Ukraine and sought to dispute Vanceâs claim that Ukraine is having conscription âproblems,â adding that, during war, âeverybody has problems.â
âFirst of all, during the war, everybody has problems,â Zelensky said. âEven you â but you have nice ocean, and donât feel now, but you will feel it in the future.â
âYou donât know that, you donât know that,â Trump said. âDonât tell us what weâre going to feel. Weâre trying to solve a problem, donât tell us what weâre going to feel because youâre in no position to dictate that. Youâre in no position to dictate what weâre going to feel.â
Trump also pointed out that the U.S. has helped Ukraine with military and monetary aid after Zelensky implied that Ukrainians had âbeen aloneâ in the war against Russia.
âYou havenât been alone. We gave you, through [our] stupid president, $350 billion,â Trump said. âWe gave you military equipment. ⊠If you didnât have our military equipment, this war wouldâve been over in two weeks.â
After the meeting, the White House confirmed that Zelensky had been asked to leave and had not signed a minerals deal.
In the aftermath of the meeting, Trump issued a statement that Zelensky is ânot ready for Peace if America is involved,â adding that Zelensky had âdisrespected the United States of America in its cherished Oval Office.â