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Lindsey Graham: Caitlyn Jenner Is “Welcome” in My Republican Party

Lyndsey Graham and Caitlyn Jenner
Lindsey Graham says that Caitlyn Jenner is welcome in the republican party

Not going to turn away a supporter! Lindsey Graham sat down for an interview with CNN on Sunday, June 7, and spoke kindly and supportively of Caitlyn Jenner (formerly Bruce Jenner), who publicly identifies as a Republican. 

"If Caitlyn Jenner wants to be a Republican, she is welcome in my party," said Graham, who, along with many other candidates, is seeking the GOP nomination for President in the 2016 election. "I'm a pro-life, traditional marriage kind of guy, but I'm running to be President of the United States."

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"I haven't walked in her shoes," continued the conservative politician, 59, of the former Olympic athlete, 65. "I don't have all the answers to the mysteries of life," he said. "I can only imagine the torment that Bruce Jenner went through. I hope he's — I hope she has found peace."

Jenner, who stormed the Internet with her stunning Vanity Fair cover reveal as Caitlyn last week, made her political leanings clear in a talked-about 20/20 interview with Diane Sawyer this past April. 

Related: PHOTOS: Caitlyn Jenner Through the Years

"I've always been on the more conservative side," she said, adding that she does, in fact, identify as a Republican. According to the Washington Post, this makes the reality star a minority in the LGBTQ community, as about 63 percent identify as Democrat, 15 percent see themselves as Independent voters, and 21 percent call themselves Republicans. 

Graham, who will face off against a laundry list of political hopefuls such as Mike Huckabee, Rand Paul, Rick Perry, Marco Rubio, and Ted Cruz for the nomination, is focusing his campaign on lowering the national debt and fighting threats abroad, downplaying his stance on social issues.

Related: PHOTOS: Celebrities' Political Affiliations

"Here's what I would say to the talk show hosts: In the eyes of radical Islam, they hate you as much as they hate Caitlyn Jenner," he told CNN. "They hate us all because we won't agree to their view of religion. So America, we are all in this together."

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