Senator Lindsey Graham was mocked for his effusive praise for Donald Trump's speech after the former president confirmed his 2024 White House bid in an unsurprising address at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday night.
The twice-impeached former president, who tried to overturn the results of the 2020 election, filed his paperwork with the Federal Election Commission establishing his candidacy to run for the office for the third time.
In a speech laden with lies, the 76-year-old Republican leader said: "In order to make America great again, I am tonight announcing my candidacy for president of the United States."
"America's comeback starts right now," he added.
Mr Trump's low-energy announcement which his Democrat opponents called "boring" was even cut off mid-way by Fox News and CNN, while MSNBC did not even carry the speech from his Florida home.
However, the former president's speech garnered praise from the South Carolina senator, who turned from anti-Trump to one of his closest allies.
"If President Trump continues this tone and delivers this message on a consistent basis, he will be hard to beat," Mr Graham wrote on Twitter.
"His speech tonight, contrasting his policies and results against the Biden Administration, charts a winning path for him in the primaries and general election."
The senator continued: "As we listen to President Trump remind us of what is possible regarding our borders, economy, and national security, it is my hope that he will continue to focus on the solutions that he offered tonight to restore a broken America."
Following his tweet, Mr Graham was ridiculed on social media, with baffled netizens asking: “What are you watching?”
“I’m laughing because Jonathan Karl [ABC News reporter] just said people were trying to leave Trump’s announcement and security started blocking them from leaving,” wrote one Twitter user.
“You make Ted Cruz look courageous,” wrote comedian Jay Black.
Will Chamberlain, a lawyer, said: “Lindsey Graham has made a career out of being wrong, this just continues the streak.”
“So, did they remove your sense of shame surgically, or was it some kind of genetic alteration,” asked political strategist Rick Wilson. “I mean, you actually typed these tweets knowing everything you know.”
Some users pulled up the senator’s tweet from 2016, where he warned against Mr Trump’s nomination for the presidential race. "If we nominate Trump, we will get destroyed... and we will deserve it," Mr Graham had written.
Prior to Mr Trump’s Tuesday announcement, the senator told reporters that “I don’t think Trump should announce tonight”.
“I think most people in the conference would prefer President Trump not to announce tonight,” he added.
