THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THAT.
PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN HEADING TO
SAUDI ARABIA THIS WEEK TO
DISCUSS ENERGY, FEELING THE NEED
TO DEFEND HIS TRIP IN A
WASHINGTON POST OP-ED, THE
PRESIDENT WRITING THIS, QUOTE,
MY VIEWS ON HUMAN A RIGHTS ARE
CLEAR AND LONG-STANDING AND
FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS ARE ALWAYS
ON THE AGENDA WHEN I TRAVEL
ABROAD AS THEY WILL BE DURING
THIS TRIP.
TWO YEARS AGO THEN CANDIDATE
BIDEN SAID HE WOULD MAKE SAUDI
ARABIA PAY THE PRICE FOR THE
MURDER OF WASHINGTON POST
CONTRIBUTOR JAMAL KHASHOGGI
CALLING THE NATION A PARIAH.
JOINING ME NOW, FLORIDAS
CONGRESSMAN MICHAEL WALTZ, A
FORMER GREEN BERET COMMANDER.
CONGRESSMAN, ALWAYS A PLEASURE
TO TALK TO YOU.
WHAT DO YOU EXPECT TO SEE DURING
THIS TRIP TO SAUDI ARABIA AND
WHAT WILL THE U.S. GET OUT OF IT
POTENTIALLY?
>> WELL, DAGEN, THAT OP-ED WAS A
BIT RICH, FULL OF REVISIONIST
HISTORY WHEREBY DEN CLAIMS TO
HAVE STABILIZED -- WHERE BIDEN
CLAIMS TO HAVE STABILIZED THE
MIDDLE EAST IN THE LAST YEAR,
IGNORING THE APPEASEMENT
STRATEGY TOWARDS IRAN WITH MORE
PROMISES OF PALLETS OF CASH.
THE END OF THE DAY, IF YOU HAVE
TO PEN AN OP-ED DEFENDING YOUR
TRIP, YOU HAVE ISSUES IN TERMS
OF YOUR NARRATIVE.
WHAT DO WE EXPECT -- WHAT I
EXPECT TO BE ON THE AGENDA IS
THE CEASE FIRE WITH THE HUGH HOU
IN YEMEN, GREATER COOP COOPERATI
WITH ISRAEL WHICH IS A GOOD
THING FINALLY.
I THINK THE ABRAHAM ACCORDS MAY
GET SOME DUE ATTENTION AND
BUILDING ON THAT AND OF COURSE
HE’LL BE HAT IN HAND, BEGGING
THE SAUDIS TO PRODUCE MORE OIL
BECAUSE HE REFUSES TO HERE IN
THE UNITED STATES.
WHAT I WOULD HOPE HE WOULD ALSO
BE DISCUSSING IS SAUDI ARABIA’S
GROWING RELATIONSHIP WITH CHINA
AND CHINA’S GROWING FOOTPRINT IN
SELLING THEM DRONES AND ALL
TYPES OF OTHER WEAPONS AND
REMINDING THEM WHO THEIR
STRATEGIC PARTNER IS AND ALSO
REMINDING THE SAUDIS OF THE
CHINESE VERY CLOSE RELATIONSHIP
WITH IRAN WHERE THEY PLEDGED
$400 BILLION IN SECURITY AND A
OTHER TYPES OF ASSISTANCE.
THAT’S WHAT I HOPE THEY’LL BE
THERE TALKING ABOUT BUT I THINK
THE HAT IN HAND BEGGING FOR
PUMPING MORE OIL WILL BE FIRST
ON THE AGENDA.
DAGEN: WE’VE ALREADY SEEN A
PREVIEW OF THIS.
IT STARTED LAST SUMMER.
A LITTLE LESS THAN A YEAR AGO
WHEN BIDEN RIGHT OUT OF THE GATE
IMPLEMENTED THE MORATORIUM, THE
BAN ON LEASING OIL AND NATURAL
GAS LEASING ON FEDERAL LAND AND
WATER.
OF COURSE, A JUDGE INTERVENED TO
BLOCK THAT BUT BY I THINK IT WAS
AUGUST OF LAST YEAR, THAT THERE
WAS A LETTER THAT WAS SENT
BEGGING SAUDI ARABIA TO PUMP
MORE OIL.
OR BEGGING OPEC PLUS, WHICH
INCLUDED RUSSIA.
THIS IS BEFORE THE YOU ATTACK,
THE INVASION ON UKRAINE.
SO AGAIN, OVER AND OVER THEY
KEEP DOING THE SAME THING BUT
EXPECTING A DIFFERENT RESULT.
>> YEAH.
WELL, YOU KNOW, TO ADD TO THAT,
HE ALSO SENT HIS THEM DOWN TO
VENEZUELA AND THAT BLEW BACK TO
THEM IN FLORIDA IN PARTICULAR
WITH SOUTH FLORIDA HISPANIC IN
SPECIFIC TO LIVED AND FLED
SOCIALISM, MAKING IT WELL-KNOWN
THAT WAS UNACCEPTABLE AND OF
COURSE THEY HOPE TO INK THE IRAN
DEAL SO TO REPLACE AMERICAN OIL
AND GAS THAT BIDEN HAS LAUNCHED
HIS WAR ON, HE WANTS TO DO IT
WITH VENEZUELAN, SAUDI AND
IRANIAN OIL AND GAS SUPPLIES.
IT’S JUST AN ASSININE POLICY,
DAGEN.
AND I DON’T THINK IT’S GOING TO
WORK BECAUSE I DON’T THINK THEY
HAVE THE CAPACITY NEARLY TO
MATCH WHAT WE COULD HAVE DONE IF
WE WOULD JUST UNLEASH IT.
DAGEN: JOE CONCHA, JUMP IN HERE
WITH THE CONGRESSMAN. >> I FIND IT AMAZING THAT HERE
>> I FIND IT AMAZING THAT HERE
WE HAVE, CONGRESSMAN, JAMAL CAY
KHASHOGGI WHO WAS BRUTALLY
MURDERED AND PRESIDENT BIDEN
SAYING HE WOULD SHUN SAUDI
ARABIA AS A RESULT OF THE MURDER
WHEN HE WAS A CANDIDATE.
NOW HE’S A PRESIDENT AND NEEDS
OIL AND HE’S GOING THERE AND
HE’S GOING TO BEG, QUITE
FRANKLY, FOR OIL BECAUSE HE
WON’T DRILL HERE.
CAN CONGRESS DO ANYTHING WHEN
THE GOP TAKES DOWN THE HOUSE?
I’M NOT SAYING IF.
IT’S A WHEN PROPOSITION AT THIS
POINT WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE
NUMBERS.
TO REALLY EXPAND OUR ENERGY HERE
AT HOME, OUR ENERGY INDEPENDENCE
AT HOME, OR CAN THE PRESIDENT
JUST VETO ANY EFFORT AROUND
THAT?
>> WELL, I WOULD PUT THE
PRESIDENT IN -- I THINK TO
ANSWER YOUR QUESTION MOST
DIRECTLY DEPENDS ON IF WE GET
THE SENATE OR WHETHER WE HAVE A
DIVIDED CONGRESS BUT I THINK THE
PRESIDENT WOULD BE HARD-PRESSED
IF GAS PRICES CONTINUE AS THEY
ARE, INFLATION CONTINUES AS IT
IS, TO START VETOING COMMON
SENSE LEGISLATION COMING OUT OF
THE CONGRESS WHEN INFLATION AND
THE ECONOMY ARE RANKING NUMBER
ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR AND FIVE
ON EVERY POLL THAT WE’RE RUNNING
AND WE’LL BE HEADING INTO
THE ’HE 24 POLITICAL SEASON.
I THINK WE CAN PUT A LOT OF
PRESSURE ON THIS ADMINISTRATION
TO GET BACK TO AMERICAN ENERGY
INDEPENDENCE AND WE’RE JUST
COUNTING THE DAYINGS, DAYS, SIX
MONTHS.
DAGEN: CONGRESSMAN, BEFORE WE
GO, BIDEN IS REPORTEDLY THINKING
ABOUT -- THIS GOES TO WHAT YOU
WERE TALKING ABOUT EARLIER,
RESUMING ARM SALES TO SAUDI
ARABIA.
YOUR TAKE ON THAT?
>> WELL, THE UNITED STATES HAS
BEEN SAUDI ARABIA’S TRADITIONAL
ARMS PARTNER AND SINCE BIDEN PUT
THE BRAKES ON IT, AS SOON AS HE
CAME INTO OFFICE, GUESS WHO
FILLED THAT VOID?
CHINA HAS.
CHINA IS NOW SELLING SAUDI
ARABIA ARMS, DRONES, CHINA IS
NOW SAUDI ARABIA’S LARGEST OIL
CONSUMER.
THERE’S BEEN DISCUSSIONS OF
ACTUALLY PAYING FOR IT IN THE
YAWNYUAN RATHER A THAN THE DOLLA
SO CHINA IS ALL TOO HAPPY TO
FILL THAT VOID AND THAT IS NOT
IN U.S. INTEREST.
THAT’S NOT WHO WE WANT AS THE
MAIN OUTSIDE ACTOR IN THE MIDDLE
EAST.
WE’VE GOT TO REALIZE THAT THE
COLD WAR THAT I BELIEVE WE’RE IN
WITH CHINA, WE JUST HAVEN’T
FULLY RECOGNIZED IT, ISN’T JUST
ABOUT TAIWAN.
IT IS BEING FOUGHT FOR INFLUENCE
ALL OVER THE WORLD AND THE
UNITED STATES NEEDS TO KEEP THAT
FIRST AND FOREMOST.
DAGEN: WE QUICKLY HAVE SEEN AN
EASTERN ACCESS DEVELOP BETWEEN
CHINA, RUSSIA, AND NOW PULLING
OTHER NATIONS THAT USED TO BE
CLOSE ALLIES TO THE UNITED
STATES TOWARD CHINA AND THIS WAS
BY DESIGN, CLEARLY.
THANK YOU, CONGRESSMAN, GREAT TO