Life

Sen. Lindsey Graham's Remarks About Vladimir Putin Assassination Criticized by Navy Seal Who Killed Osama Bin Laden

Sen. Lindsey Graham has faced backlash for his remarks about assassinating Vladimir Putin, even by the Navy Seal who killed Osama Bin Laden.

Lindsey Graham photographed in 2019
Image via Getty
Getty

Sen. Lindsey Graham is receiving pushback from recent comments he made about assassinating Vladimir Putin—including from the Navy Seal who fatally shot Osama bin Laden.

TMZ reports that the Seal, Robert O’Neill thinks the South Carolina Republican shouldn’t have made those remarks on TV.

“How does this end? Somebody in Russia has to step up to the plate,” Graham said on Fox News on Thursday night, alongside footage of Russian forces taking out a nuclear power plant in Ukraine. “The only way this ends my friend is for somebody in Russia to take this guy out. You would be doing your country a great service and the world a great service.”

O’Neill also says that because Graham is on the Senate Armed Services Committee, he should take an off-the-record approach to Russia, adding that politicians shouldn’t be concerned about their ratings. However, O’Neill doesn’t disagree with Graham. He thinks “someone on the inside should put a hit on Putin if the madness doesn’t end soon,” TMZ writes.

Graham doubled down on his comments via Twitter, writing, “The only people who can fix this are the Russian people. Easy to say, hard to do. Unless you want to live in darkness for the rest of your life, be isolated from the rest of the world in abject poverty, and live in darkness you need to step up to the plate.”

But Graham saw blowback from his own party, with Sen. Ted Cruz responding, “This is an exceptionally bad idea.” He continued, “Use massive economic sanctions; BOYCOTT Russian oil & gas; and provide military aid so the Ukrainians can defend themselves. But we should not be calling for the assassination of heads of state.”

Related Stories

A protester is seen holding a placard that says "Block Visa and Mastercard for Russia"
life

Visa and MasterCard Suspend All Russian Operations Amid Ukraine Invasion

The companies announced the moves Saturday, after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for the suspension of commercial transactions in Russia.

Joshua Espinoza1522 days ago
Vatican featuring St. Peter's Basilica, Rome, Italy
life

Local Churches Criticize Vatican for Not Condemning Russia's Invasion of Ukraine

The head of the Polish bishops’ conference this week criticized the Vatican for not condemning Vladimir Putin and Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Brad Callas1522 days ago
A member of the Ukrainian military gives instructions to women and children that fled fighting
life

More Than 1 Million People Have Fled Ukraine Amid Russian Invasion, According to UN

In the week since Russia began its assault on Ukraine, more than one million people have already fled the Eastern European country's borders.

Brad Callas1523 days ago

Stay ahead on Exclusives

Download the Complex App