CENTRAL — U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham is officially in the presidential race for the 2016 election, joining a Republican crowd that so far includes eight challengers.
Graham, a South Carolina native, chose his hometown of Central, South Carolina, to announce his candidacy Monday morning. In the downtown area, right outside the building where his parents' bar and his family's home used to sit, Graham took to the podium in front of a crowd of about 300 supporters.
According to the tenured senator, he is running for the office "to protect our nation that we all love so much from all threats, foreign and domestic."
"I want to be president to defeat the enemies trying to kill us - not just penalize them or criticize them or contain them - but defeat them," Graham said.
Graham was first elected to the U.S. House in 1994, and then was elected to the Senate in 2002 and re-elected in 2008.
Leaning on his knowledge of foreign policy, defense beliefs and 33 years in the U.S. Air Force, Graham said "radical Islam is running wild," and that Iran has "more weapons and more capability to strike our homeland than anytime since 9/11."
He added that if the U.S. isn't firm in its intention to deny such weapons, Iran will trigger a nuclear arms race.
"I have more experience with our national security than any other candidate. I know the players - our friends and our enemies alike. Most importantly, they know me," he said.
In addition to international issues, Graham spoke about Social Security and Medicare and his belief that President Barack Obama has put those programs in jeopardy and made the programs unsustainable.
Graham said his answer is to fix entitlement programs to make sure people who need the benefits the most receive them.
"I know from personal experience how important those programs are to the lives of millions of Americans," he said. "I lost my parents when I was a young man and my sister was in middle school. We depended on Social Security benefits to survive."
Before Graham took the podium, he was introduced by Darlene Graham Nordone, his younger sister. Nordone told the story of how she and her brother lost their parents at an early age, and how Graham assumed the role of guardian during his collegiate years.
"When I needed Lindsey, he put my interests ahead of his own. In politics, he has done the same thing - putting the country's interests ahead of his own political interests," Nordone said. "We need that kind of leadership in the Oval Office today, and Lindsey Graham will provide that."
Graham is the latest to announce on the Republican ballot, joining other notables such as Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum. About 15 Republicans are expected to enter the race along with five Democrats, according to recent projections listed by The New York Times. Democrats include Hillary Clinton, the former Secretary of State, who announced her candidacy in April.
Despite his affiliation, Graham said he has built a reputation for working with both Republicans and Democrats and would continue that effort in the White House.
He added, "If you make me president, I'll fight each day harder than I fought the day before to keep this country safe, prosperous and as good as the people who made it great."
Derrek Asberry is the SRS beat reporter for the Aiken Standard and has been with the paper since June 2013. He is originally from Vidalia, Ga., and a graduate of Georgia Southern University. Follow him on Twitter @Derrek Asberry.