WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) today questioned Senior Official Performing the Duties of the Deputy Secretary Ken Cuccinelli and U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Erin Nealy Cox at a Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution hearing titled The Right of the People Peaceably to Assemble: Protecting Speech by Stopping Anarchist Violence.

• GRAHAM: “They worked it out in Seattle after they took over part of the town. Being upset about what happened to Mr. [George] Floyd is absolutely all-American. Trying to occupy part of the city and turn it into a socialist enclave is not.” https://youtu.be/aJTfIMwRktE?t=154

• GRAHAM: “I'm going to be watching really hard whether or not the people who attack our officers are prosecuted, and I will join my Democratic colleagues to make sure that the [Inspector General] looks really hard at any excessive use of force. I think most Americans are probably where I'm at. If a cop is going overboard we want to know about it and take corrective action, but I think most Americans want to make sure that somebody who throws a brick or a frozen bottle of water or anything else at a police officer, that they have their day in court too. So I want to put you both on notice that we're going to hold you accountable for prosecuting those who hurt our cops.” https://youtu.be/aJTfIMwRktE?t=77

• GRAHAM: “To those who accuse the United States of being a totalitarian state, I don't buy it because I don't remember many hearings like this in Germany, where you call the Gestapo and ask 'hey who you beaten up and why?' I don't remember any open press about what's going on talking about the press, these things have been extensively covered.” https://youtu.be/aJTfIMwRktE?t=6

• GRAHAM: "I don't know what's happening in Chicago. But this is not about Mr. [George] Floyd. Young kids are getting killed just outside their house. Somebody needs to do something about it. So my point is that this committee…is going to look at all of it. And all of that means what's going on in Chicago, and should the federal government help? How many kids have to die every weekend before enough is enough?” https://youtu.be/aJTfIMwRktE?t=174

• GRAHAM: “We're not going to live in an America like this. So if you're a white supremacist I hope you get a knock on your door soon if you're engaging in violence, and I hope you go to jail…from my point of view I don't want any American – black, white, anything in between – having to be afraid to live in their own country.” https://youtu.be/aJTfIMwRktE?t=252

Click here to watch Graham’s full remarks

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