Sen. Lindsey Graham whacked his close ally Donald Trump on Sunday for praising the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah and criticizing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Mr. Trump, the front-runner for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, said last week during a campaign speech in Florida that the Lebanese Hezbollah terrorist group was “very smart” and that Mr. Netanyahu was “not prepared” for Hamas’ deadly attacks against the Jewish state. 

“That was a huge mistake,” Mr. Graham, South Carolina Republican, said of the former president’s praise of Hezbollah on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

As for the Netanyahu rebuke, Mr. Graham said: “I thought it was not helpful.”

“President Trump has a lot — he recognized Israel, Jerusalem as the capital. He recognized Golan Heights as part of Israel. He put in place Abraham Accords. That’s what I would say,” Mr. Graham said. “No, I wouldn’t criticize Bibi.”

• Ramsey Touchberry can be reached at rtouchberry@washingtontimes.com.