what he said 24 hours ago he's a threat it's very serious should the world and
more importantly should kim jeong-hoon take that literally I think what his
point was is not missing that necessarily literally as in you know
we're going to come after you it was a defense as what he was saying he's
saying America is not going to be screwed with for the last eight years
we've had a policy of let's let's go ahead and go to the world let's go to
China and let them take the lead let's go to the United Nations let's see if
sanctions work it has gotten us to the point where they have at least what we
think is 60 nuclear weapons miniaturized weapons and including a missile system
that can reach probably half of the United States of America so I think the
president's point is is what this whole idea of being PC and kumbaya and let's
be always calm and collected have gotten in closer to them being able to bully
everyone in the world they've already threatened gone before
they threaten America before they put propaganda out there they readily
pointed I'm not screwing around with you for another four years sure but the
implication as we just heard in the State Department briefing is what the
president said you know it implies that use force with force right that the new
well I think it's point is is that we're not just going to have diplomacy on the
table and you're not going to get to keep going forward and marching and
threatening the world that I absolutely believe that the president is making it
very clear that the use of force is an option that I'm not going to run away
from if you think you can continue nuclear tests continue a nuclear program
continuing threat in the world and directly saying you're coming after
United America you need to know this is a new day the last eight years of a
policy that allowed you to get those weapons and to be this bully we're not
going to let you have another four years of them okay Rick Wilson I want to make
sure I get you and also just responding the same question and also just
responding to VIN what do you think first off Ben's answer to you betrays a
level of naivety about nuclear weapons and about the Korean Peninsula and
Pacific that is utterly staggering I'm definitely in stupidity right there
because because though the fact of the matter is you can't you don't you don't
threaten people the deterrence model is this you say to another country if you
hit me with nuclear weapons I will respond therefore neither country does
it you don't if you talk bad about me if you threaten
me I could respond with fire and fury that's not a code word for some little
tap on the wrist that's a code word for the first use of nuclear weapons this is
entirely out of the bounds of what a nation like ours are diverse about we
kind of had eleven amount and level North Korea into a shivering danger well
and it doesn't mean that we're going to use nuclear weapons this is the part
where I say you're being irresponsible because you're saying that the only
option America had would be nuclear weapons no then I know they're not going
about what we will do is Marya it would probably die after the budget
karyotyping diplomacy have worked for this country for generations and the
fact of the matter is the failures of the administration's of both parties
over the last a twenty five years have led North Korea to malware it is now now
where you got us we argue you're channeling or nevertheless at a military
strike on North Korea even in a non nuclear strike will not result in the
deaths of millions South Korea hundreds hundreds of dollars listen to anything
I've got here and then listen this is a matter by which you have displayed your
absolute ignorance of the cream you can name call you want know but you're not
talking about Milly agony of the rack we're a military operation this is not
something where a military operation that you throw off let me go let me go
back into the point that this president was making it could possibly lead to
anything except incredibly damaging and Laura fiying let me go back onto the
point al Qaeda ok let me go back in the point here what you're missing obviously
is you're implying that somehow over the last eight years our policy of a hundred
percent diplomacy and deferring to Japan the United Nations has somehow been a
success it's been a total failure you and I wouldn't be having this
conversation right now if it wasn't for the fact that they've been able to do
exactly what they've done with their nuclear program and including via have
the ability to reach half the United States of America if we keep going down
the road that you're going down and what you're saying is successful then what is
failure looked like to use 60 nuclear weapons you're saying is successful
having half of America be by North Korea think I just I just said that the
failures of administration's of both parties for the last 25 years in the
Korean Peninsula have led us to this point the fact of the matter is though
in addition I'm all right that's really not accurate your weapons and firing
fury you're in a whole different zone you're old the fire in theory requires
us again though once again where your and judgment none of which Donald Trump
it has in his strong suit and with all due respect he's sitting
there with all better in fact that is a threat buyer into fury striker you again
again this is where you're being generous a bottling of nuclear strike on
the crank let's listen to the words come on now do you have a paper equivalent
you favor listen to the words coming in my mouth if you're an acid them quite a
favor preemptive strike then okay it's simple for you yeah again be effaced
initially listen it's not as simple as that it turns out to note we don't get
rained here it's not as simple as what you're saying it's just there are other
options on table there are development able you look like I thought that you
obviously don't care what anyone else a great idea okay I'm going to finish that
hang on a wreck wreck wreck rifle boom wreck right then have a moment listen
carefully because you're having a hard time understanding this there are other
options militarily besides only nuclear options fire and fury does not
necessarily mean only push the red button for a nuclear war it is
incredibly incompetent and ignorant to imply that the only option our military
had except is actually we're war that is not what the red yesterday you'll tease
that is not what the president will say you're implying there's only one option
but there is more than one option which address aspect we're living let me come
let me cut through this for a second I've been I totally understand the point
you're making and how Rick you're arguing against it but so to Ben's point
if you know the diplomacy thus far has not been working what in your opinion
and you have the State Department saying let's let's give it a shot let's get
North Korea at the table in European in your opinion what's what what is the
best option here look you have to move this into a
deterrence frame and they did play that frame is not threatening a preemptive
strike a deterrence zone is so do what we're still doing and weapons are
deployed and used by North Korea if the happens are deployed and used by
North Korea than a nuclear response is on the table but you don't lay it out
there and Lance it I gotta aim it out but not he was not talking about a
conventional strike the cut you're telling me that hardly coated you're
telling me the only time that the president can use the words fire and
fury is literally if nuclear weapons are in the air are youing are you literally
kidding me right now pull some that is that is the
worst foreign policy I've ever heard in my entire life
then there are boundaries and there are there are ways you talk about deterrents
general mattis did it right today Don I truck shot from the lip as he usually
does because he is ignorant of history he's a nerd of strategy he's a grad
diplomacy and he's I really don't like Donald Trump to turn at the foreign
policy you're describing the foreign policy that you're describing has been a
failure over the last year when the president says he's going to protect him
defend the United States of America and then the only option you give the
president is nuclear war that just shows you have no understanding of your rights
the option is active deterrence and diplomacy you will don't think she's
educated you say right North Korea with conventional weapons then if you strike
me and I ask you this question if you strike North Korea with conventional
weapons you understand that the most heavily armored area of the world for
artillery is on the South Korean border with North Korea they will flog the hell
out of South Korea of Seoul this is not going to be pretty and yours and you're
saying that you think there are no consequences to this kind of action it's
really a response no what I want to stop that well oh no just pivot please let me
just ask been to you and then Rick I want you to weigh in on the the
different messaging right coming out of the White House so you have the language
firing period the president uses then you have the language that we've heard
from both Tillerson and from mattis it's not all entirely on the same page I
don't know if you guys were listening to Admiral Kirby a second ago on how I mean
essentially it's been a catch-up situation as this was off-the-cuff been
so yeah can you speak to the issue of look I think the bugs were they on the
same page I think the president was being blunt and off-the-cuff it was very
clear from how he said that it was off the cuff but I do think the tone would
be absolutely well I think off on North Korea I think the words that people have
assessed it with him saying are fire and fury are words that you know what do you
want to use a different word his point was to speak directly to Kim Jong I'm
going to make it very clear that is a new day you're not going to get away
what's up well you've been given in his administration a heads up what do you
think right amenable Amy let me show about North Korea Judas I
think that there are multiple ways that you can deal with diplomacy only having
a kumbaya diplomacy that we've gone which is go to Japan go to the United
Nations and all of a sudden we'll kind of set back a little bit that has been a
failure to the point where half of America is now at risk and you have a
crazy guy with nuclear weapons he can actually deliver in a real capacity my
point is to be speaking up my point is his policy is we're going to be tough
now can you have good cop bad cop with the State Department absolutely I think
that's what you've seen today I think what color zone is doing today well I
think you have to have more than just one avenue to talk to Kim jong-un
because the one Avenue of Seoul diplomacy has gotten us nowhere but a
crazy guy who had now has nuclear weapons that he can deliver to half the
United States of America it did not work for eight nine years we would have been
doing since the end of the bush time so you're talking nine plus years nine a
have to be conservative and now he has more of an arsenal he's ever had before
even while sanctions have been imposed and we have new sanctions you can do two
things at once briefly but the president is not going to sit there and be bullied
by what you think as he always does the president as he always does shot from
the lip he was riffing he was whatever impulsive thing that drives him drove
him at that moment and so yes you had to see the entire administration play
catch-up and in a matter as consequential as a potential nuclear
exchange you have to have probity and you have to have judgment you have to
have discipline and Donald Trump has never displayed those at any point his
life or his career and so everybody that's scrambling and by the way I've
talked to some my friends in the military today who who were in this
world and the sense was oh dear God it wasn't I mean great let's get on board
with this great policy I was oh dear God this guy hain't no idea whatever's no
there was no policy that was announced it was a present defending the fact you
have a leader that has no program American deliver on policy that the
policy of saying if you continue to come after America or if you threaten America
we will defend yourself as a policy that I'm pretty sure almost every president
in my lifetime who didn't mean what about a new pocket fire and Reagan he
didn't know that during an aborted letter so be kind and give him a hug and
send them a gift is that what you want diplomacy to be for a guy with nuclear
Oh love you suggested have it that's a
foreign policy over the last nine years that has been a failure so we have
nuclear weapons that guy has now so I would say might you are unbelievably
irresponsible and ignorant of the Korean Peninsula it's astounding
okay on that we're going to go Rick Wilson and Ben Ferguson it's been a
pleasure thank you very much for a guy like you