Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and former Senator Al Franken (D-MN) made a bet on the winner of the 2024 Presidential election.

The two former colleagues made the wager in an interview on “The Daily Show” Monday night. Toward the end of the segment, Graham and Franken sparred over former President Trump’s legacy and argued whether Trump could beat President Joe Biden in a rematch. Graham said Trump would have to work hard to win back many of his supporters, but bet $20 that he would win.

Graham began the exchange. “Here’s the question for you and maybe others: Trump is trying to come back,” he said. “I think he’s got a better than good chance of winning the primary and a 50/50 chance of being president again.” Franken put his head in his hand, while the audience jeered. “So you’ve got to ask yourself, how can that be?”

“Here’s what I know about this country, about this democracy, about our Constitution,” Franken interjected. “The number one tradition that’s meaningful in this country is the peaceful transition of power. … How then can you want a guy who allowed us to go through this violent insurrection?” he said, referring to the January 6 Capitol riot.

“Well let me just say this — the other side of the story is that when President Trump was president, on the things I care the most about — national security — I thought he did a damn good job,” said Graham, also lauding Trump for negotiating the Abraham Accords, taking out Iranian terrorist leader Qasem Soleimani, securing the southern border, and acheiving energy independence. “So I look at the policies of Trump, and I like the policies of Trump.”

But Graham said that both Trump and Biden would be challenged to prove that they deserve four more years in office. “At the end of the day, [Trump]’s got to prove to people — not me — that he’s able to lead us again. And that will be a challenge for him. And that will be a challenge for Biden to say ‘Give me four more years after the last four.’ We’ll see what happens.”

“Well, l think Biden wins that,” Franken replied.

“Let’s bet. Can we bet?” Graham responded.

“Yeah, how much?” Franken asked.

“Twenty bucks. To be paid here,” Graham said. He then shook Franken’s hand to seal the bet.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILY WIRE APP

Then on Tuesday morning, Graham knocked Trump for picking a fight with Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, and advised him to stop. “If you start this thing, you better be willing to take it,” Graham said in an interview on “Fox & Friends.”

“I don’t like it. Trump’s not into these ‘thou shalt nots.’ That’s not his thing,” he said, referring to the phrase, “Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican,” the so-called “11th Commandment” used by Ronald Reagan during his 1966 campaign for California governor.

“The bottom line is, I think if I were Trump, which I am not, I would be running on four years of being a pretty effective president, ‘the best is yet to come,’” Graham added. “I would say, ‘DeSantis, I picked him out of a crowd. I knew he was talented early on. I’m the guy that saw the talent. He’s been a great governor, but I’m better able to be president the next four years.’ But that ain’t gonna happen.”

The window to prevent an Israeli strike against Iran’s growing nuclear program is closing quickly, a retired Israeli military general says.

Retired Brigadier General Amir Avivi says that the United States’ retreat from the Middle East, which has allowed China and Russia to move in, is quickly limiting Israel’s options for avoiding conflict. Israel’s timeframe for launching a strike against Iran has shortened to potentially as little as a few months.

An Israeli strike against Iran “is bad for everybody, but this is at the moment what’s going to happen, and maybe happen in three months, in six months, maybe a year,” Avivi told The Washington Free Beacon. Avivi spent three decades in the Israel Defense Forces before becoming the chairman of an Israeli national security think tank, the Israel Defense and Security Forum.

Iran and Russia have deepened ties since the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war last year. Iran has reportedly provided Russia with ammo and drones to fuel its war machine while pressuring Moscow to supply Tehran with S-400 missile systems. The anti-air missile system would bolster Iran’s defensive capabilities and make delivering a strike against sensitive or high-priority targets more difficult for Israel.

“At the moment, the U.S. is sitting on the fence, not deciding to lead and build a coalition that will stabilize [the region] and challenge” the Iran-Russia alliance, Avivi said.

“We managed for many years to prevent the Russians from giving the Iranians many capabilities, mainly air defense,” Avivi said. “But now the Russians are so dependent on Iran that they’re willing to assist Iran further. Israel needs to take into account that it’s not only about this red line, but our ability to act.”

Former President Donald Trump had begun to build such a coalition around the Abraham Accords and checking Iran. Progress faltered after President Joe Biden entered office on more confrontational footing with Saudi Arabia, a key U.S. ally in the region, over its human rights record.

Earlier this month, Saudi Arabia and Iran struck a peace agreement and agreed to resume diplomatic relations. The agreement was mediated by China, which has extended its influence in the Middle East along with Russia as the U.S. has drawn back.

“We were very concerned that the consequences of the U.S. not being proactive in the Middle East would push the Saudis into the China-Russian axis,” Avivi said. “However, this is not irreversible. The U.S. must make it clear that they will be very active in the Middle East—enough to gain the confidence of allies that they will not abandon them.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu voiced concerns over the progress that Iran has made toward becoming a nuclear power at a national security conference in February. Iran has enriched uranium up to 84%. Weapons-grade uranium is 90%.

“The only thing that has credibly stopped rogue nations from developing nuclear weapons is a credible military threat or a credible military action,” Netanyahu said.

“You can couple that with crippling economic sanctions, but that’s not a sufficient condition. A necessary condition, and an often sufficient condition, is credible military action,” he continued. “The longer you wait, the harder that becomes. We’ve waited very long.”