Lindsey Graham: Biden, Democrats won't change policies because AOC, radical left have them 'in a box'

Americans are seeing a resurgence in COVID-19 cases, an ongoing crisis at the border, rising prices because of record inflation and a nationwide crime surge after President Biden’s first year in office. 

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said not to expect the president and Democrats to change their ways because Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and the radical left are calling the shots.

"The problem is they can’t change their policies because the left has Biden in a box," Graham said Saturday on "Watters’ World." "If he tried to go back to Trump’s policies on the border, AOC would go crazy."

Graham suggested AOC, other members of the "Squad" (Reps. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, Jamaal Bowman of New York and Cori Bush of Missouri) and the rest of the radical left are the true leaders of today’s Democratic Party.

"People live in fear of primaries from her and the radical left," he told host Jesse Watters. "If you’re a middle-of-the-road Democrat, your biggest fear is crossing these people."

Graham’s comments come amid recent reports that some progressives are panicking about a potential GOP wave in the November midterm elections and are concerned that will be a precursor to Biden losing the White House in 2024. 

Corbin Trent, a former AOC aide, and Jeff Weaver, Sen. Bernie Sanders’s former presidential campaign manager, both told Politico Biden could face a primary challenger.

FORMER AOC AIDE: 'OLD AS S--T, INEFFECTIVE' BIDEN COULD LEAD DEMS TOWARD 1992-STYLE ELECTION TURMOIL

"I don’t know what will happen, but we’re not connecting," Trent told "The Story" on Fox News Friday. "Right now, the American people are divided in how they feel about the economy, divided about how we’re handling the COVID pandemic. … We have to do a better job uniting the country. For whatever reason, President Biden has not been able to do that to this point."

Biden, Graham said Saturday, could have avoided many of his problems if he had kept former President Donald Trump’s policies in place.

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"We have record levels of illegal crossings because Biden changed Trump policy," he said. "Look at Afghanistan. If he had done nothing in Afghanistan, kept it just like Trump had it, it wouldn't have been the disaster it is today. So here's the sum total: The American people are suffering. Our money is being eroded by record inflation. We're less safe. We're less prosperous. Crime is rampant across the country. Inflation is roaring and radicalism is on the rise."

"This is all due to Pelosi-Schumer-Biden-Harris. This the worst governing coalition in my lifetime," Graham concluded.

Meanwhile, Biden remains underwater in national polls. The president's approval rating stands at 40 percent approval and 54 percent disapproval in a USA Today/Suffolk University national poll released on Tuesday. 

Fox News' Charles Creitz contributed to this report.