Graham's Prediction: 'We'll Have to' Return to Afghanistan

It's going to be deja vu all over again in Afghanistan, or so suggests Sen. Lindsey Graham. In a BBC interview Monday, the Republican predicted that "we will be going back into Afghanistan as we went back into Iraq and Syria." The reason in this case? He believes the Taliban will "give safe haven to al-Qaeda" and ultimately create a "cauldron for radical Islamic behavior." Business Insider reports the BBC's Stephen Sackur seemed "stunned," interjecting, "Hang on, you seriously think the United States will once again in the foreseeable future put troops back in Afghanistan?"

"We'll have to, we'll have to," responded Graham. He continued, per Fox News, "Why did we go back to Syria and Iraq? Why do we have 5,000 troops in Iraq today? Because of the caliphate rising, projecting force outside of Iraq. Killing Americans, killing the French, attacking the British." He presented his view of an alternative: support the resistance in the Panjshir Valley.

"The Taliban will not be able to govern Afghanistan," said Graham, "they're hated by the Afghan people. What’s going to happen over time is, you’re going to see the resistance rise, ISIS will come after the Taliban large, and the entire country is going to fracture in the next year creating a perfect storm for Western interests to be attacked. You can do one of two things: you can say ‘that’s no longer my problem’ and let it build and get hit, or hit them before they hit you." (More Lindsey Graham stories.)