Earlier this week, FBI agents confiscated Sen. Lindsey Graham’s cellphone after he received a suspicious text from Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.
It was reported that the sender had impersonated Schumer, suggesting that the New York Senator’s phone may have been compromised.
Addressing the issue at The Hill and Valley Forum in Washington on Wednesday, Graham expressed his thoughts on cybersecurity during a discussion on artificial intelligence and espionage at the event which brings together technology industry professionals, business leaders, security experts, lawmakers, and other influential figures.
“My phone is in the hands of the FBI now,” Graham began. “So, I get a message, I think, from Schumer. It ain’t from Schumer. And the next thing you know, my phone is — I don’t know — anything you can create apparently can be hacked.”
Graham added that he did not know how long his device would be in the hands of the FBI. A spokeswoman for Graham confirmed the story.
“The Sergeant at Arms is investigating a possible hack of Senator Graham’s phone,” Taylor Reidy told NBC News.
A report about the incident from The Hill appeared to suggest that Schumer’s device was less than state-of-the-art in the first place.
“Chuck Schumer isn’t texting you from his flip phone,” a Democratic Senate aide said. “If you get a text message from Schumer, it probably isn’t real.”
The person said Schumer uses an old flip phone made by LG that he has carried since before text messaging became popular.
Earlier this year in the U.S. Senate, tensions rose between Graham and Independent Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema when a bipartisan immigration bill failed to move forward.
The bill fell apart when most Republicans argued it did not adequately address border security concerns. During a discussion about his vote against the bill, Sinema asked Graham if he would allow her to ask a question, to which he consented.
“Senator, I was just listening carefully to your speech, and you mentioned that you thought the bill that we had drafted and introduced yesterday was a good start but not enough. Yeah. I’m wondering if, if, you would remind us how you voted yesterday on the motion to proceed to the bill that had the border package that we worked on together?” the Arizona senator asked.
“I’ll be glad to. I voted no because I didn’t see a process in place or willingness by my Democratic colleagues to allow me to express. I think it could be better, see in the Gang of Eight. You weren’t here, but Sen. [John] McCain was; we worked really hard. Senator Bennett was involved in all this stuff in 2013, and we let the bill come to the floor, people amend it, and we spent days and weeks. So that’s why I voted, ‘No,’” Graham explained before Sinema interrupted to ask if he would allow another question.
“No, no, I, I am reclaiming my time,” Graham insisted.
“So here’s what I’m saying. This has been a half-assed effort to deal with border security for the people,” Graham continued as Sinema kept pressing for a question.
“No, I am speaking. Speak later,” Graham responded.
“To the people in the House, we have not really tried hard to secure the border. We took a well-meaning product. People worked really hard. I applaud you and others for coming out with a product that I thought had a lot of good things in it, but not enough for me,” the Republican said.
