Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, was heckled and booed by a boisterous crowd of conservatives Saturday as he attempted to praise former President Donald Trump in a hurried 5-minute speech.
"Slow down for a moment... Graham protested, "I was born in this county," amid boos and cries of "traitor!"
Trump, who made Pickens' Fourth of July celebration the focal point of his campaign for the 2024 primary in the early-voting state, attracted an estimated 30,000 conservatives who were impatient with Graham.
The senator continued, "I found common ground with President Trump," as the jeers persisted. "Getting there took some time... President Trump, however, has grown on me, and he enjoys himself. And that's something we both share.
In rural areas like Pickens, in the northwest of the state, where two South Carolina Republicans, former Gov. Nikki Haley and Sen. Tim Scott, are also on the ballot, Trump continues to enjoy enormous popularity. Next year, Pickens will host the first presidential primary in the South.
In the wake of his April indictment by Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg, Graham, an on-again, off-again Trump ally, pleaded with his own donors to donate money to Trump. However, Graham's past criticism of Trump's policies and demeanor continues to irritate the former president's most ardent supporters.
"Slow down for a moment... Graham protested, "I was born in this county," amid boos and cries of "traitor!"
Trump, who made Pickens' Fourth of July celebration the focal point of his campaign for the 2024 primary in the early-voting state, attracted an estimated 30,000 conservatives who were impatient with Graham.
The senator continued, "I found common ground with President Trump," as the jeers persisted. "Getting there took some time... President Trump, however, has grown on me, and he enjoys himself. And that's something we both share.
In rural areas like Pickens, in the northwest of the state, where two South Carolina Republicans, former Gov. Nikki Haley and Sen. Tim Scott, are also on the ballot, Trump continues to enjoy enormous popularity. Next year, Pickens will host the first presidential primary in the South.
In the wake of his April indictment by Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg, Graham, an on-again, off-again Trump ally, pleaded with his own donors to donate money to Trump. However, Graham's past criticism of Trump's policies and demeanor continues to irritate the former president's most ardent supporters.
