Did Lindsey Graham once say Republicans would ‘deserve’ to be ‘destroyed’ if they nominated Trump?

Claim:

A screenshot authentically shows late U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham once tweeted, “If we nominate Trump, we will get destroyed…….and we will deserve it.”

Rating:

After Democrats’ 2026 U.S. midterm election victories, in which the party gained control of the House and Senate, people claimed a screenshot showed that late U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina once tweeted, “If we nominate Trump, we will get destroyed…….and we will deserve it.”

Numerous posts and comments about the alleged tweet specifically referenced the news Darline Graham, Lindsey Graham’s sister, lost her senatorial election to Democrat Annie Andrews. Darline Graham has served as interim senator in Lindsey Graham’s seat since his death in July.

(@ddiamond via X)

Checking Lindsey Graham’s X account confirms the screenshot is real (archived), hence the claim is true. It was posted on May 3, 2016, when the platform was called Twitter (Snopes previously reported on this in 2018).

(@LindseyGrahamSC via X)

Hours after Lindsey Graham posted the message, news media outlets declared Trump the decisive victor in that year’s Indiana Republican primary, making him the presumptive GOP presidential nominee.

Prior to the 2016 presidential election — one in which Graham, himself, ran as a Republican primary candidate — the then-senator called Trump an “opportunist” and “completely unhinged.” Graham also said he did not believe Trump is truly conservative or Republican, that Trump seeks isolationism, and that he’s “not fit” and “not qualified” to be president, among other critical statements.

Before Graham dropped out of the 2016 Republican primary in December 2015, he went on CNN and called Trump a “race-baiting, xenophobic religious bigot.”

Graham later supported Trump during his first term, as well as his second term until Graham’s death. He also briefly denounced Trump following the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot, saying, “All I can say is count me out. Enough is enough.”

For further reading, we previously reported on various claims regarding Lindsey Graham’s funeral, as well as a rumor about his personal life.

Sources