AND DOING IT IN A WAY THAT MAKES
IT LOOK LIKE SOMEONE ELSE DID
IT.
MARIA: JOINING ME NOW IS
NEBRASKA CONGRESSMAN, DON BACON,
A RETIRED AIR FORCE BRIGADIER
GENERAL.
GREAT TO SEE YOU TODAY.
THANKS VERY MUCH.
HOW WOULD YOU ASSESS THE HELP, T
AID THAT IS GOING TO UKRAINE
FROM THE U.S. AND ALLIES?
>> I THINK THEY’RE GETTING MOST
OF THE AID THAT THEY NEED NOW
BUT IT’S LATE.
WE SHOULD HAVE GIVEN BETTER AIR
DEFENSE WEAPONS BEFORE THE
INVASION, THE MIG 29s
AIRCRAFT, WE SHOULD HAVE GAVE
THEM ANTI-SHIPPING WEAPONS
BEFORE THE INVASION.
THAT COULD HAVE CREATED
DETERRENCE TO PUTIN’S DECISION
TO INVADE.
THE DECISION TO RESUPPLY AFTER
THE INVASION WAS SLOW.
I THINK WE’RE AT ABOUT 90 OR
95%.
I WOULD STILL DO THE MIG 29S.
CUE GOTYOU’VE GOT TO FIND A WAY
TARGET CONVOYS.
WE ARE PROVIDING BETTER SURFACE
TO AIR MISSILE CAPABILITY AND
THE UKRAINIANS SURELY NEED THAT.
I THINK WE’VE BEEN SLOW AND I
THINK THE QUALITY OF WEAPONS, WE
WERE SLOW TO GIVE THOSE TOO BUT
NOW WE’RE STARTING TO DO SO.
MARIA: I MEAN, THERE HAVE BEEN
SO MUCH CRITICISM ON THE BIDEN
ADMINISTRATION FOR WALKING THIS
SLOW APPROACH TO THE AID FOR
UKRAINE.
MAYBE THAT’S ONE REASON WE SAW A
WHOLE LOT OF RHETORIC THIS
WEEKEND FROM JOE BIDEN.
HERE’S WHAT HE SAID ABOUT
VLADIMIR PUTIN, WHICH OF COURSE
WENT AROUND THE WORLD.
WATCH.
>> WE’LL HAVE A DIFFERENT
FUTURE, A BRIGHTER FUTURE,
ROOTED IN DEMOCRACY AND
PRINCIPLE, HOPE AND LIGHT, OF HE
DECENCY AND DIGNITY, OF FREEDOM
AND POSSIBILITIES.
FOR GOD’S SAKE, THIS MAN CANNOT
REMAIN IN POWER.
>> MR. PRESIDENT, DO YOU WANT
PUTIN REMOVED?
MR. BE PRESIDENT, WERE YOU
CALLING FOR REGIME CHANGE?
>> NO.
MARIA: YEAH, SO WHAT DO YOU
MAKE OF IT, CONGRESSMAN?
HE SAID THIS MAN CANNOT HE
REMAIN IN POWER WHICH TRIGGERED
THE WHITE HOUSE TO WALK IT BACK,
SAYING NO, NO, NO, HE WAS NOT
CALLING FOR REGIME CHANGE.
>> JOE BIDEN IS A RAPID FIRE
GAFFE MACHINE.
I MEAN, HE HAD THREE OF THEM
THIS WEEK WHERE THE WHITE HOUSE
HAD TO COME BACK AND A CLEAN IT
UP.
THIS WAS THE MORE SERIOUS ONE.
HE SHOULD HAVE STAYED ON SCRIPT.
BUT HE WENT OFF SCRIPT, THE
WHITE HOUSE STAFF PROBABLY
DIDN’T NEED TO COME IN WITHIN
MINUTES TO FIX IT.
IT WAS EMBARRASSING.
THE LEADER OF THE FREE WORLD AND
THEY’RE HAVING TO FREQUENTLY
CORRECT HIS COMMENTS.
THIS WASN’T THE ONLY ONE.
EARLIER IN THE WEEK HE SAID THAT
TROOPS, U.S. TROOPS WERE GOING
TO UKRAINE.
SO THEY HAD TO CLEAN THAT UP.
MARIA: THAT’S RIGHT.
>> HE SAID IF THE RUSSIANS USED
BIO’S OR CHEMICAL WE PONS W
WOULD RESPOND IN KIND AND THEY
HAD TO CORRECT THAT.
OUR ALLIES LIKE FRANCE IN THIS
CASE FOUND THE COMMENT REPUGNANT
ABOUT TRYING TO REPLACE PUTIN IN
POWER.
THIS COMES WITH A PRICE AND HE
NEEDS TO HAVE DISCIPLINE.
YOU LEARN WHEN YOU’RE AN
EXECUTIVE OR GENERAL, WHICH I
WAS, YOU BETTER HAVE GOOD
COMMUNICATION DISCIPLINE AND
STAY ON MESSAGE.
MARIA: IN THE MIDDLE OF ALL OF
THIS, GENERAL, YOU KNOW, YOU’VE
GOT THE U.S. WORKING TO GET THE
COUNTRY BACK INTO AN IRAN DEAL
AS YOU KNOW, RUSSIA NEGOTIATING
ON BEHALF OF THE U.S.
SECRETARY OF STATE ANTONY
BLINKEN AEXTENDED A RARE SUMMIT
BETWEEN ISRAEL AND ARAB NATIONS
TODAY TO TRY TO REASSURE MIDDLE
EAST ALLIES ABOUT THE DEAL.
THE WHITE HOUSE HASN’T TOLD US
ANYTHING ABOUT IT.
FLORIDA CONGRESSMAN MICHAEL
WALTZ JOINED ME YESTERDAY WITH
HIS TAKE.
LISTEN TO THIS.
>> NUMBER ONE, IF IRAN GETS A
BOMB, SAUDI ARABIA, TURKEY, THE
REST OF THE MIDDLE EAST WILL
WANT ONE AS WELL.
WE’LL HAVE AN ARMS RACE IN THE
MIDDLE EAST.
NUMBER TWO, WE’RE ALREADY SEEING
IRAN’S PROXIES, THE HOUTHIS OUT
OF YEMEN ATTACK GLOBAL OIL
SUPPLIES.
THEY JUST LAUNCHED A MISSILE
YESTERDAY INTO A REFINERY IN
SAUDI ARABIA SO LITERALLY AS
WE’RE ABOUT TO UNLEASH BILLIONS
BY LIFTING SANCTIONS THAT WILL
FLOW INTO IRAN, IT’S GOING TO
FLOW RIGHT OUT OF TEHRAN, OUT TO
ITS TERRORIST PROXIES THAT ARE
THEN ATTACKING IRAN’S
COMPETITORS IN TERMS OF OIL TO
FORCE THE WORLD TO BUY MORE
IRANIAN OIL AND THE SECOND PLACE
THAT MONEY IS GOING TO GO WILL
BE TO MOSCOW.
MARIA: CONGRESSMAN, WHAT ABOUT
THAT?
COULD THIS ADMINISTRATION
JUSTIFY GETTING INTO THE IRAN
DEAL, GETTING BACK IN YOU NOW?
THEY’RE BOMBING THE UNITED ARAB
EMIRATES.
THE HOUTHIS ARE.
THEY’RE BACKED BY IRAN.
THEY BOMBED THE ARAMCO FACILITY
IN SAUDI ARABIA OVER THE
WEEKEND, THE HOUTHIS ARE BACKED
BY IRAN.
THIS ADMINISTRATION WANTS
IRANIAN OIL BACK ON THE MARKET
TO HELP WITHS GAS WITH GAS PRICE
SHOULD WE BE COZYING UP TO THE
LARGEST SPONSOR OF TERRORISM.
>> I AGREE WITH THE SENTIMENTS
OF MIKE WALTZ, A GREAT COWORKER
AND COLLEAGUE.
IT’S LUDICROUS THAT JOE BIDEN IS
RELYING ON RUSSIA, PUTIN, TO BE
THE INTERMEDIARY BETWEEN US AND
IRAN.
I MEAN, IT’S THE DEFINITION OF
STUPIDITY IN MY VIEW.
YOU CAN’T TRUST EITHER ONE.
AND IN THIS DEAL THAT WE’RE
MAKING WITH IRAN, IT COMES WITH
A SUNSET CLAUSE ON A NUCLEAR
PROGRAM SO WHAT WE’RE BASICALLY
DOING, WE’RE LEGITMIZING A
FUTURE PROGRAM FOR IRAN.
IT COULD LEAD TO WAR, MAYBE NOT
THIS YEAR BUT FIVE YEARS DOWN
THE ROAD OR SOMETHING AND WE’VE
GOT TO BE THINKING FARTHER OUT
THAN JUST THIS YEAR.
IN A ALLOWING BILLIONS OF
DOLLARS TO GO TO IRAN, THE
WORLD’S LEADING EXPORTER OF
TERROR, IT’S ALSO THE DEFINITION
OF STUPIDITY.
THEY’RE GOING TO BE ARMING THESE
MILITIAS IN IRAQ, SYRIA,
LEBANON, SAUDI ARABIA, BAHRAIN,
AND THEIR WHOLE GOAL IS TO
DESTABILIZE THE SUNNI ARAB
STATES.
THIS AGREEMENT WILL UNDERMINE US
WITH THE ARAB COUNTRIES AND
ISRAEL AND WILL STRENGTHEN AN
ADVERSARY WITH IRAN.
MARIA: IT’S PRETTY EX
STRAIGHTFORWARDEXTRAORDINARY AND
THEY’RE NOT TELLING US ANYTHING
ABOUT I THEY’RE MOVING FORWARD.
CONGRESSMAN, THANK YOU VERY MUCH
WEIGHING IN ON ALL OF THAT,
DANGEROUS TIMES FOR SURE.