Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said President Donald Trump needed to go further than offering verbal support for the Iranian people as they engage in protests over their regime and "lay out a plan" for Congress, Europe and the world.
"President Trump is tweeting very sympathetically to the Iranian people. But, you just can't tweet here. You have to lay out a plan. And, if I were President Trump, I would lay out a plan as to how I would engage the regime.
"I would tell the Europeans and the Congress and the world that America is going to withdraw from this agreement unless it's a better deal. And, I'd lay out what a better deal would look like. And, I would stand with the Iranian people the entire time," Graham said Sunday on CBS' Face the Nation.
Graham said the approach of former President Barack Obama "of relieving sanctions hoping the regime would moderate has failed."
"If I were Trump, I'd do the exact opposite of Obama. Obama said, 'I don't want to get involved, I don't want to mess up the chance of getting a deal with Iran.' Well, the deal with Iran hasn't worked," Graham said.
Anti-government protesters have amassed in Iran for the fourth day despite warnings of a crackdown by Iranian officials. Protesters have numbered in the thousands against the Islamic Republic's unelected clerical elite and Iranian foreign policy in the region.
Trump tweeted support of protesters Saturday and Sunday maintaining Iran's leaders feared their own people, saying, "Oppressive regimes cannot endure forever, and the day will come when the Iranian people will face a choice… The world is watching!"
"Big protests in Iran. The people are finally getting wise as to how their money and wealth is being stolen and squandered on terrorism. Looks like they will not take it any longer. The USA is watching very closely for human rights violations!" Trump tweeted Sunday.
The protests come following Trump's refusal in October to certify Tehran is complying with its 2015 nuclear deal, as he also threatened he might terminate the accord.
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