Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) slammed presidential GOP front-runner Donald Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), saying that either candidate as nominee would cost Republicans the 2016 election.
“It’s all like being shot or poisoned. I think you get the same result, whether it’s quick or it takes a long time,” Graham told reporters on Thursday, when asked if Trump would be a better nominee than Cruz.
{mosads}Graham, who ended his presidential bid last month and endorsed former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, has stepped up his criticism of Trump, with the businessman leading in the GOP polls. Cruz and Trump are also battling for the top spot in Iowa ahead of the Feb. 1 caucuses.
Graham added that “dishonest beats crazy.”
“Hillary Clinton’s going to be seen as a dishonest candidate,” he said.
The South Carolina Republican said earlier this week that Trump is “all-over-the-board” crazy and added Thursday that Cruz is “ideological to a fault” and couldn’t help grow the party, particularly with Hispanic voters.
Graham said Republicans should nominate somebody “normal” instead.
“Dishonest loses to normal. Just pick somebody normal. Pick somebody out of the phonebook, we win,” he added.
Asked about Graham’s remarks, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) laughed and said “that’s a classic Lindsey Graham.” But McCain sidestepped weighing in on what a Cruz or Trump nomination would mean for the party.
“I trust the judgment of the voters,” he added.
Graham’s comments come after former Republican presidential nominee Bob Dole told The New York Times that a Cruz nomination would be “cataclysmic” for the party.