Anna Paulina Luna Torches Lindsey Graham Over ‘Iwo Jima’ Comments: ‘Unacceptable And Dark’

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) and a handful of her Republican colleagues criticized comments made by Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC), who enthusiastically urged President Donald Trump to launch a ground operation against Iran and suggested that Americans should be expect casualties similar to those sustained during one of the bloodiest battles of the Second World War.

While speaking with Fox News on Sunday, Graham had harsh words for critics of the conflict and urged President Donald Trump to launch a ground operation targeting Iran’s main oil production hub. “We’ve got two Marine Expeditionary Units sailing to this island. We did Iwo Jima. We can do this. The Marines, my money is always on the Marines,” the senator said.

Graham was calling for an assault on Kharg Island, a key Iranian economic engine located approximately 16 miles off Iran’s coast in the northern Persian Gulf. The island serves as the hub for roughly 90 percent of Iran’s oil and gas export revenue.

Such an operation would likely involve an amphibious landing against defended positions, well within artillery range from the Iranian mainland. Iranian forces could employ missiles, drones, mines, and reinforcements from the nearby mainland, posing significant risks for U.S. forces.

The Battle of Iwo Jima, which Graham referenced, provides a historical benchmark for the potential scale of losses. Fought from February 19 to March 26, 1945, over 36 days on an island roughly similar in size to Kharg Island, U.S. forces sustained 6,821 soldiers killed in action and 19,217 wounded, for a total of more than 26,000 casualties.

Casualty rates were particularly severe for some units. For example, one Marine group at the Quarry suffered an 83.3 percent casualty rate by the end of D-Day, leaving only about 150 Marines still able to fight. Several battalions, including the 1st Battalion of the 26th Marines, incurred over 100 percent casualties when accounting for replacements rotated in during the battle

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) criticized Graham for callously advocating for such a risky undertaking. “There are some in the Senate that advocate for war everywhere. Lindsey Graham is one of them. He does NOT tell the President what to do, nor does he control Congress,” Luna posted on X.

“NO BOOTS on the ground. If Senator Graham wants to go fight in a foreign conflict, let him be the first to volunteer.”

Luna was not the only House Republican to take issue with Graham’s comments. “We lost 7000 Marines and 20000 were wounded,” Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) wrote in a post of his own, referencing the Battle of Iwo Jima.

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) also pushed back against Graham’s urging of ground involvement. “What in the world would possess anyone to say this?” Mace wrote in a post of her own, adding, “I do not want to send South Carolina’s sons and daughters into war with Iran.”

In another post, Graham urged the Trump Administration to freeze Graham out of any discussions on Iran. “I don’t want to hear one word from a guy with no kids, desperately sending our sons and daughters into war on the ground in Iran,” the congresswoman said.

I am deeply upset at the lack of respect for life Senator Lindsey Graham is displaying when talking about our troops. He is acting as if they are expendable cattle. This is unacceptable and dark. There were over 26,000 American casualties at Iwo Jima. pic.twitter.com/EWMaVtOWX3

— Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (@RepLuna) March 22, 2026

The back and forth comes amid the backdrop of President Trump’s 48-hour ultimatum delivered to Iran, in which he called on the regime to open the Strait of Hormuz. Noncompliance could trigger escalated U.S. actions, including strikes on Iranian infrastructure, the president added.

Iran responded by vowing to strike energy infrastructure across the Gulf States, as well as desalination plants, setting up a potential economic and humanitarian catastrophe.

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