South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, who said Sunday that he has a
91 percent chance of running for president, said that Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul has a "disastrous" foreign policy.
Speaking on MSNBC's
"Morning Joe" on Monday, Graham said Paul is behind President Barack Obama on handling situations overseas.
"Rand's a libertarian. He has a view of the world that I don't share. He said that we shouldn't have any troops in Iraq, he agreed with Obama, that was a disaster. When there was a chance to do something constructive about Syria with a no-fly zone, he said that we don't need one.
"Generally he has been more wrong than right. He has an isolationist view of the world that I don't share," Graham said.
He later added, "Rand Paul is one step behind leading from behind. Even Obama is more aggressive."
Graham discussed a range of foreign policy issues. In Libya, he said, while it wasn't a mistake to enter the conflict, it was misguided not to follow-up after Moammar Gadhafi was ousted, leading to an unraveling of the country's stability.
In Syria, he said, the United States should have established a no-fly zone and armed the Free Syrian Army.
Graham also said that the idea that the rise of the Islamic State was caused by American involvement in the Middle East was misguided.
"This is a religious war. They are trying to purify their religion, create a caliphate in the Middle East, destroy Israel, and come after us. I don't buy the construct that we brought this on ourselves," he said.
During a conversation with the panel, he acknowledged the he was close personal friends with former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton but disputed the idea that it was not possible to challenge someone you like in politics.
"I don't dislike Hillary Clinton. I think she's the third term of Barack Obama. I think she's the architect of failed foreign policy. Her and Bill did a better job of selling Obamacare than he did. So, to me, if we can get a qualified nominee, she loses because she represents a failed presidency," he said.
He added that he felt her view of Russia had been "misguided."
Meanwhile, in the race for the 2016 Republican nomination, Graham said that any contender hoping to be successful in the South Carolina primary has to do well in New Hampshire. He specifically named former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio.
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