Lindsey Graham, the hawkish senator from South Carolina, is officially running for president.

Graham, 59, who served in the U.S. Air Force before entering politics, has some ground to make up in polls, but says he is running because he is ready to tackle threats, foreign and domestic, on day one to keep America safe.

“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 told supporters at his formal campaign announcement Monday in Central, S.C.

Graham’s announcement speech was heavy on foreign policy, an area he is known for talking about. 

“The next president must be an informed and decisive commander in chief, ready immediately to address these threats,” Graham said. “I’m running for president because I am ready to be commander in chief on day one.”

He also touched on domestic policy, saying he will work to save Medicare and Social Security as president. Graham often tells the story of his parents dying when he was young, which forced him to help raise his sister while living off government assistance.

“As president, I’ll gladly do what it takes to save a program that once helped my family,” he said.

After stops in New Hampshire on Tuesday and Wednesday, Graham comes to Iowa later in the week. He’ll be in West Des Moines and Waterloo on Friday, and Bettendorf on Saturday. Graham will also be in Boone on Saturday to appear at Sen. Joni Ernst’s “Roast and Ride” event with other 2016 candidates.

Graham served in the South Carolina state legislature for a term before moving up to Congress where he served six terms in the U.S. House. He now is serving his third term as South Carolina’s senior senator.

“If you look at his comments and his website, it’s foreign policy, and more foreign policy,” said Mack Shelley, professor of political science. “He hasn’t annunciated much on domestic issues, and he doesn’t really need to. [Foreign policy] is one of the things that distinguishes him.”

Shelley said Graham suffers from a lack of name recognition, which may hurt his chances in states like Iowa. The most recent Iowa Poll from The Des Moines Register this past weekend shows Graham near the bottom, registering just 1 percent support.

Graham continues to grow the field of Republican candidates for president in 2016, which already includes three of his fellow senators from Washington. Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry is expected to be the next entrant to the race when he announces Thursday.