Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) bristled at questions from NBC’s Kristen Welker about President Donald Trump’s “plan” for Iran — or lack thereof.

Kicking off what became a tense back-and-forth on NBC’s Meet the Press Sunday, Welker asked the South Carolina Senator: “Is the United States at war with Iran?”

Graham, while not quite ready to take a victory lap, said Iran is “close to collapsing.”

“I think the Ayatollah would say yeah,” Graham said. “I don’t know if this is technically a war, but here’s what I can say the headline is for me Sunday. The mother ship of terrorism is sinking, the captain is dead. The largest state sponsor of terrorism, Iran, is close to collapsing.”

Welker then broached the question of who is responsible for replacing Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei — who was killed in Saturday’s attack.

“Will the United States pick the next leader of Iran, or will the Iranian people pick the next leader?’

“No,” Graham said. He added, “There will be no American boots on the ground. This is not Iraq, this is not Germany, this is not Japan. We’re going to free the people up from the terrorist regime. And the goal is not only to help the Iranian people to chart a new destiny, to make sure no matter who takes over in Iran, no matter who it is, no matter who the people pick, they cannot become the largest state sponsor of terrorism. They can’t fuel Hezbollah, the Houthis, and Hamas. They can’t have ballistic missiles, they can’t have a nuclear weapon. They will be out of the terrorism business. So the people will pick.”

Welker pressed for details.

“Senator, history tells us just how complicated regime change is,” Welker said. “We saw that when Saddam Hussein was ousted, and the terror threat and group moved in. How will the United States make sure that the next Iranian government isn’t worse than the current regime?”

“That’s not our job, to pick the next Iranian government,” Graham said. “I don’t remember being attacked by Iraq anytime, you know, in the past. Iraq is complicated, but you know, we have a relationship with Iraq. It’s up to Iran to pick your leader. It’s not my job, it’s not President Trump’s job. We’re not going to occupy the country. We’re going to give the people of Iran a chance to do something they’ve never had before: chart their own destiny.”

The Meet the Press moderator cited comments from Trump — who said Saturday in a Truth Social post, “Hopefully the IRGC and police will peacefully merge with the Iranian patriots and work together as a unit to bring back the country to the greatness it deserves.”

“Is hope the plan for the future of Iran?” Welker asked.

“No,” Graham said. “The future of Iran is going to be determined by the Iranian people. The new Iran, whatever it is, whether it’s a cleric, or a representative democracy, our goal is to make sure it cannot become again the largest state sponsor of terrorism. That’s a win for us. That’s a win for the region.

“But is there a plan to make sure that happens, Senator?” Welker said. “Is there a plan? Does the President have a plan to guarantee that that happens?”

“No, it’s not his job or my job to do this!” Graham said — getting short with Welker. “How many times do I have to tell you?! Our job is to make sure Iran is no longer the largest state sponsor of terrorism, to help the people reconstruct a new government, no boots on the ground. You know this idea, ‘you break it, you own it?’ I don’t buy that one bit.”

Watch above, via NBC.

The post ‘How Many Times Do I Have to Tell You?!’ Lindsey Graham Snaps at NBC’s Kristen Welker Asking if Trump Has ‘A Plan’ On Iran first appeared on Mediaite.