“I’m getting overwhelmed,” he told prime-time host Sean Hannity. Then, he turned to Hannity’s viewers, adding: “Help me. They’re killing me moneywise. Help me. You did last week. Help me again.”
A few hours earlier, on the “Fox & Friends” morning program, Graham delivered a similar message. “My opponent [Democrat Jaime Harrison] will raise almost $100 million,” he said. “I’m being killed financially. This money is ’cause they hate my guts,” he said, apparently referring to Democrats.
Politicians appearing on TV news often sneak in a reference to their campaign websites in an effort to attract supporters and their contributions. But such a direct appeal for donations, especially in a news interview on such a high-profile venue as Fox, is rare.
But it doesn’t regularly feature politicians using their airtime to advance fundraising goals. Graham’s comments assume Fox’s audience is sympathetic to him and supports his reelection.
As it was, Graham’s…
