Graham expects Biden will have GOP support if he strikes Israel-Saudi deal

Sen. Lindsey Graham, often an outspoken critic of President Joe Biden's foreign policy moves, said the White House could expect Republican support if the administration can manage to seal a long-sought-after deal between Saudi Arabia and Israel.

“I'm here on national television telling the Biden administration, if you can land this deal I think you'll have a lot of Republican support in the United States Senate for a treaty between Saudi Arabia and the United States, because [it will] be good for Israel, it will be good for the world,” the South Carolina Republican said Sunday during an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

Graham, who recently traveled to Saudi Arabia and has previously met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has played a key role in helping keep negotiations that could lead Saudi Arabia to normalize its relationship with Israel alive.

And if the White House can get a treaty up to the finish line, Graham said Sunday, he expects Republicans in the Senate will help pull it across.

The Biden administration has been looking to build on the 2020 Abraham Accords, bilateral agreements reached during the Trump administration with the United Arab Emirates and other nations recognizing Israel’s existence — an effort complicated by the Oct. 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to travel to Saudi Arabia on Monday as ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas have stalled.

A deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia is seen as something that could reset relationships across the Middle East.

But concerns remain that former President Donald Trump would push to kill such a deal by pressuring Republicans. Graham, however, said he doesn’t expect that to happen.

“I don't think anybody on the Republican side is going to undercut the deal,” Graham said, when asked if Trump could pose a threat to such an agreement.

“And I think President Trump will get his fair share of credit by having the Abraham Accords as the foundation of this,” Graham added.