Sen. Lindsey Graham: Gaza Can't Be Run by Hamas, Palestinian Authority

Sen. Lindsey Graham vowed Sunday that he will not support funding for any future Palestinian state in Gaza that would be run by either Hamas or the Palestinian Authority, and called on Hamas leaders either to be killed or captured rather than allow them to remain in any form of power.

"I would not invest 15 cents in a future Palestine where Hamas is still standing," the South Carolina Republican said in an interview on ABC News' "This Week." "Their leaders need to be killed and captured, and I wouldn't invest 15 cents into the Palestinian Authority regarding a new Palestine."

He added that under leader Mahmoud Abbas, the "Palestinian Authority is dead to me."

"When we get to the day after Israel has ceased military operations because Hamas has been destroyed, the new Palestine cannot have Hamas, and it cannot be governed by the PA," Graham said.

President Joe Biden last month said that an important key to lasting stability between Israel and the Palestinians is a reunited Gaza Strip and West Bank that would be governed under "a revitalized Palestinian Authority as work continues toward a two-state solution for the war-torn region.

But Graham told ABC News Sunday that Hamas wants to increase the casualties of Palestinians in Gaza, and accused the leadership of using its people as human shields.

"So, I blame the deaths of all these Palestinians on Hamas, but Israel is trying to mitigate casualties," Graham said.

The war, which started after the Hamas terrorist attack on Israel on Oct. 7, has left at least 20,000 people dead in Gaza and 53,300 injured, according to claims from the Hamas-operated Gaza Health Ministry and the Hamas government media office.

Israel Defense Forces report that 1,200 people have been killed and 6,900 others injured since Oct. 7.

Graham also on Sunday said the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas is causing threats to grow against the United States, and said he's been arguing for more funding for the Defense Department and the FBI.

"Jihadist groups all over the world are calling on their members to attack America as payback for us helping Israel, so, the threat levels are at an all-time high," said Graham, adding that the Oct. 7 attacks in Israel "put gasoline on a fire and we need to get our border secure and up our game."

The United States is "under siege at home and abroad," the senator added. "They want to punish us for helping Israel. So, now's not the time to go cheap on the FBI or the Department of Defense.

Graham also discussed the ongoing Senate negotiations concerning border security policies, which Republicans want to tie to a Biden administration bill to send money to Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan.

Both sides say progress is happening on the border reforms, but Republicans are calling to tighten restrictions on parole measures that offer protections for immigrants, said Graham.

"The hang-up is parole," he said. "This administration does not want to let go of the tool they're abusing. They've been taking the parole statute and granting mass parole, blanket parole and we need to stop."

Graham Sunday also spoke out against a ruling from the Colorado Supreme Court to keep former President Donald Trump off the state's primary ballot,

"In my view, there's no constitutional basis for the decision they rendered," he said. "I think it will be a slam dunk in the Supreme Court. Donald Trump will eventually be on the ballot in Colorado. I think he will win the primary."

Graham, who ran against Trump in the 2016 GOP primary, added that he thinks the Colorado ruling is "chilling" and sets up "a politicization of the presidential races and would be bad for the country."

Meanwhile, Graham pointed out that Trump is "not the first politician to claim he was denied a fair election" and believes he will win in 2024 if he "puts a vision out improving prosperity for Americans."

But, Graham said, if Trump looks back at his loss in 2020, "he will lose."

"At the end of the day, we need to secure the ballot in the 2024 cycle, but Donald Trump's not the first person to complain about an election," he said.