Sen. Tim Scott defended Sen. Darline Graham, his fellow South Carolina Republican, on Sunday ahead of her special GOP primary runoff this week, dismissing concerns about her debate blunder on national security last week.
“Darline Graham is the real deal,” Scott told NBC News’ “Meet the Press,” adding that she is “highly qualified, incredibly competent, ready for primetime.”
Asked how confident he is that Graham will win Tuesday’s primary runoff, Scott said, “Very confident,” adding that he waited several weeks before he endorsed her “to make sure that I felt like she was ready.”
“I can tell you, as the senior senator for the great state of South Carolina, the person I want in the Senate with me, Darline Graham, representing the people of South Carolina,” he said. “Easy choice.”
Scott boosted Graham just days after her viral moment at a debate against Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., whom she faces in Tuesday’s runoff.
Asked whether Taiwan and the South China Sea are important national security issues facing the U.S., Graham answered: “I’m just going to be honest here. I’m not, on national security, I’m not that informed on national security, so, but I do support the military.”
She added: “My brother was in the Air Force for 33 years, so I will do everything I can to support the military. My dad was in the Army. I’m not a polished politician up here. National security is not my thing, not my area of expertise. But I do support the military.”
The answer drew concerns from some Republicans about Graham’s readiness to govern on national security and foreign policy issues — which were of pre-eminent concern for her brother, the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. — if she’s elected to a full term.
Darline Graham was appointed last month to serve the rest of her brother’s term after he died unexpectedly. Several days after she was appointed, Graham decided to run in a special election to serve a full term and was quickly endorsed by President Donald Trump. After the special primary election, in which Graham and Norman advanced to a runoff, Scott endorsed her, as well.
Trump and Scott rallied in South Carolina in support of Graham’s campaign Friday, with Trump telling voters: “She only knows how to put America first. … You vote for her, you’re going to be very proud of that vote.”
On Sunday, Scott, who is chair of the Senate Republicans’ campaign arm, the National Republican Senatorial Committee, also spoke about competitive general election contests in states like Texas, Michigan and Iowa coming up in November.
He defended the NRSC’s rhetoric about Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed, who would become the first Muslim senator if he is elected.
The NRSC has repeatedly referred to El-Sayed’s faith in social media posts and alleged he has “terrorist ties” despite the lack of any evidence for the claim, drawing criticism from Democrats that Republicans are inciting Islamophobia.
In an interview on “Meet the Press” this month, El-Sayed responded to GOP attacks painting him as “too radical,” saying, “We always knew they were going to go here.”
“At the end of the day, it’s not radical to believe that people should be able to afford their groceries. It’s not radical to believe that you should have healthcare in this country,” he said.
“Now, they’re going to try and paint me as a certain thing, given my name, but I also think it’s important for us to recognize that America has a long history of embracing,” he added. “America is a lot bigger than very small people.”
Scott on Sunday pointed to El-Sayed’s decision to campaign in the primary with Hasan Piker, a Twitch streamer who once apologized for comments he made about the U.S. deserving the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
“Birds of a feather flock together,” Scott told “Meet the Press.” “The company you keep does matter.”
Scott added that even though El-Sayed has denounced Piker’s past comments, he has not said he would stop campaigning with him.
“You can’t denounce it with your words and do something different with your actions,” Scott said. “We believe what you do, not just what you say.”
Speaking about the Senate race in Texas, which is a competitive contest between GOP state Attorney General Ken Paxton and Democratic state Rep. James Talarico, Scott denounced Talarico as “weird” and “radical.”
He also demurred when he was asked about concerns about Paxton’s character and his past, which includes an investigation by the Justice Department into whether he abused his office to aid a political donor and a 2023 vote by the GOP-led Texas House to impeach him. Paxton, who denied any wrongdoing and said the allegations were politically motivated, did not face any charges following the Justice Department investigation, and he was acquitted in a state Senate trial following his impeachment.
Scott, who endorsed Paxton’s opponent, Sen. John Cornyn, in the GOP primary this year, did not respond when he was asked whether Paxton has the character to serve in the Senate.
Instead, he denounced Talarico, saying: “I can tell you this: What we know with great clarity is that James Talarico does not have the character to serve in the United States Senate, nor does he have the … right position on the issues that Texans care most about. I’ll say it very clearly, and I’ll say it again: James Talarico is out of step, completely out of step with Texans.”
Talarico has called the GOP attacks a distraction aimed at drawing attention from the allegations against Paxton, and he has emphasized his legislative record and what he said was a focus on bipartisanship as a state lawmaker.
“I’ve served for four terms in the Texas House of Representatives, where I brought Democrats and Republicans together to pass 60 bipartisan bills to cut property taxes, to raise teacher pay, to lower the cost of housing, childcare, prescription drugs, including insulin, and I’ve called out the extremes in both parties,” he said in an interview with NBC News in May.
