THAT, YOU KNOW, OTHER THAN ME. >> AHA. >> YOU USE SOME MORE COLORFUL LANGUAGE THAN US. >> YES. >> SO SENATOR, I GREATLY APPRECIATE YOUR PASSION FOR UKRAINE. I WANT TO ASK YOU THIS QUESTION. I THINK SO MANY AMERICANS AGREE WITH WHAT YOU HAVE SAID AND OTHERS HAVE SAID. UNDERSTANDING THAT WE HAVE ALLIES, WE NEED TO WORK WITH, UNDERSTANDING WE HAVE A TIE RANT WHO THREATENED WORLD WAR II, REPEATEDLY, UNDERSTANDING WE ARE SHIPPING SOME WEAPONS IN THERE THAT, OBVIOUSLY, WE ARE NOT ANNOUNCING. WHAT ELSE BEYOND WHAT PRESIDENT BIDEN SAID YESTERDAY, WHAT ELSE DO WE NEED TO GET IN THERE AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE? >> YES SO WE CAN TALK SOME SPECIFIC WEAPON SYSTEMS. I THIS CITY BICKER POINT, WHERE YOU ARE ACTUALLY HEADED IS THE MORAL QUESTION OF WHERE THIS GOES OVER THE NEXT THREE MONTHS AND THREE YEARS. THAT WEAPON STLS, THEY NEED ES-300s NOW, THE PORTLAND CLIP ABOUT SPECIFIC ANTI-AIRCRAFT STUFF THAT'S NEEDED THAT THEY NEED MORE DRONES. THEY NEED MORE JAVELINS. THEY NEED COASTAL DEFENSE SYSTEMS. OBVIOUSLY, RUSSIA'S NAVY IS TRYING TO GET INVOLVED IN THIS. WE SEEN THAT IN SOME OF THE BOMBINGS IN THE SOUTH. MORE FUNDAMENT AMY. I GIVE THE ADMINISTRATION CREDIT FOR CERTAIN THINGS. BRINGING ALONG EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANKS. IT WAS IMPORTANT. THE U.S. DOESN'T HAVE A LOT OF TRADE WITH RUSSIA AND EUROPE DOES, SO BRINGING ALONG IN THOSE CENTRAL BANKS WAS IMPORTANT. THERE WERE ALL SORTS OF PARTICULAR WAYS THE ADMINISTRATION YESTERDAY SAID A LOT OF THE RIGHT THINGS. JUST BECAUSE THE PEN WASN'T IN PRESIDENT BIDEN'S HAND DOESN'T MEAN THE WEAPONS ARE IN ZELENSKYY'S HANDS TODAY. AT EVERY POINT WE ARE TOO SLOW. IT FEELS A HUGE PART OF THE ADMINISTRATION AUDIENCE IS THESE INTERNAL LAWYERS. THEY DO THESE LEGAL HAIR-SPLITTING ARGUMENTS. AT THE END OF THE DAY, EVERY WEAPON WE SHIP TO UKRAINE IS A DEFENSIVE WEAPON SYSTEM, BECAUSE THEY'RE THE ONES BEING INVADED. UKRAINE DIDN'T CAUSE THIS. THERE IS A FIGHT FOR FREEDOM HAPPENING IN UKRAINE. EVERY WEAPON WE GIVE UKRAINE IS DEFENSIVE. SO THE LURES IN THE ADMINISTRATION NEED TO TAKE A BACKSEAT. THE ADMINISTRATION NEEDS TO TELL PEOPLE WHAT THEY'RE FOR, NOT AGAINST, MOSTLY WHAT YOU HEAR OUT OF THE ADMINISTRATION IS SELF DETERRENCE. >> SO YOU ARE ON THE INTEL COMMITTEE. YOU KNOW THINGS, OBVIOUSLY, THAT EVEN OTHER MEMBERS OF CONGRESS CAN'T KNOW WE LOOKING AT THIS FROM THE OUTSIDE, REALLY WE HEAR ABOUT WEAPON SYSTEMS GOING OVER THERE, BUT WE CAN'T MOVE IT. WE CAN'T SEE THE MOVEMENTS, DAVID IGNACIOUS TALKED ABOUT GOING TO THE BORDER AND SEEING A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF WEAPONS CROSS THAT BORDER. SO HOW, WHAT CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT WHAT'S NOT GETTING THERE, WHAT, HOW IT NEEDS TO GET THERE FASTER? WHAT ARE THE ROAD BLOCKS? >> WELL, SO, FIRST OF ALL, AT THE LEVEL OF LETHAL TARGETING INFORMATION, WHICH IS WHAT WE DISCUSSED TOGETHER ON YOUR SHOW, I DON'T KNOW, A WEEK, A WEEK AND A HALF AGO. THE ADMINISTRATION REGULARLY STARTS THE CONVERSATIONS BY SAYING, WHAT MIGHT PUTIN THINK ABOUT THIS? AND WHAT MIGHT HE CLAIM BY PRESS RELEASE WOULD LEAD US TO SOME TERRIBLE NEW PLACE? WE SHOULD, OF COURSE, BE CAUTIOUS WHEN YOU ARE DEALING WITH A GUY WHO WHETHER YOU THINK HE IS A BAD MAN OR NOT HAS A GIANT NUCLEAR ARSENAL AND HE WOULD LIKE TO BE PERCEIVED AS A MADMAN. YOU DON'T START EVERY CONVERSATION SAYING HE HAS NO MORAL BOUNDS AND BECAUSE HE HAD A LOT OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS, EVERYTHING WE DO SHOULD BE GUIDED BY THE ARGUMENT THAT PUTIN MIGHT BE REALLY PISSED ABOUT THIS AND, THEREFORE, DO WHAT? BOMB, WOMEN AND CHILDREN? I 19 THE THEATER BOMBING YESTERDAY HAD CHILDREN WRITTEN ON THE ROOF, WE KNOW FROM SOME BACK CHANNEL STUFF. I'M NOT SAYING ANYTHING ACROSS INTEL LINES HERE, WE KNOW SOME ENCRYPTED APPS THAT A LOT OF RUSSIAN MILITARY WERE USING AFTERWARDS, THEY'RE CHILLING THE FACT THAT THEY WERE CHEERING CHILDREN. THEY WANT TO DEMORALIZE THE POPULATION AND BY US HAVING AN ADMINISTRATION THAT GOES OUT AND ALMOST LEADS BY SAYING, IT MIGHT BE DANGEROUS TO DO THIS THING THAT MIGHT BE PERCEIVED AS ESCALATORY. HE GETS THE ADVANTAGE, HE ALWAYS GETS TO MOVE FIRST AND KNOWS THE BOUND OF EVERY WE SHOULD HAVE PUTIN WORRIED WHAT MIGHT HAPPEN TO HIM AND TO THIS WAR EFFORT OF HIS IF HE CONTINUES TO ESCALATE AGAINST CIVILIAN POPULATIONS. RIGHT NOW YOU DON'T GET MORAL OR STRATEGIC HIGH GROUND ON THE SIDE OF THE ADMINISTRATION BECAUSE THERE'S SO MUCH LEGAL PARSING THAT HAPPENS IN PUBLIC. >> SENATOR, THERE'S ALSO OBVIOUSLY CONCERN ABOUT WORLD WAR III BECAUSE YOU HAVE PUTIN CONSTANTLY TALKING ABOUT THE USE OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS. DIPLOMATS TALKING ABOUT THE USE OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS. I MEAN, SOMETIMES OUR INTEL COMMUNITY GETS IT RIGHT. SOMETIMES WE GET IT WRONG. I DON'T KNOW WHERE YOU WERE ON THE WAR IN IRAQ IN 2003. I CAN TELL YOU, I WAS ON THESE AIRWAVES AND I SUPPORTED IT. I WAS WRONG ABOUT WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTIONs. THE CONSEQUENCES WERE TERRIBLE, 4,445 AMERICANS DEAD. THE CONSEQUENCES OF BEING WRONG HERE OBVIOUSLY FAR MORE EXPANSIVE. SO DO YOU -- I'M NOT ASKING YOU OBVIOUSLY TO DO THE WHITE HOUSE'S BIDDING HERE, BUT DO YOU UNDERSTAND THE STAKES HAVE SO MOMENTOUS WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT WHETHER WE GET IT RIGHT OR GET IT WRONG, COULD END UP IN A NUCLEAR WAR? >> OF COURSE. AND THAT'S WHY I'VE SAID I'M NOT IN FAVOR OF DECLARING A NO-FLY ZONE BECAUSE YOU DON'T GET TO DECLARE A NO-FLY ZONE, YOU HAVE TO ENFORCE ONE, AND THAT WOULD MEAN PUTTING AMERICAN PILOTS IN THE AIR NLD GETTING INTO A DIRECT SHOOTING WAR WITH RUSSIA. I'M NOT ADVOCATEING THAT. BUT I AM SAYING YOU CAN'T LET PUTIN SAY BECAUSE HE HAS A NUCLEAR WEAPON, EVERYTHING ELSE HE DOES CAN CAUSE US TO SELF-DETER. 44 MILLION UKRAINIANS, 67% OF THE POPULATION HAS FLED. IF PUTIN, MOVES FORWARD WITH TARGETING CIVILIAN POPULATIONS FOR MONTHS OR YEARS IF THE RESISTANCE COULD LAST THAT LONG, ARE WE SAYING THAT AT EVERY POINT HE CANS ESCALATE TO THIS, HE CAN ESCALATE TO DEATH CAMPS, ESCALATE TO THAT? AS WE CONSTANTLY SAY BECAUSE HE HAS NUCLEAR WEAPONS WE CAN'T DO MORE. WE CAN DO MORE. THIS IS A POPULATION OF FREEDOM FIGHTERS ON DISPLAY FOR THE WORLD TO SAY, AND IF THEY'LL SHOOT IT, WE SHOULD SHIP IT BECAUSE THEY'RE WILLING TO FIGHT. WE DON'T NEED TO DO THE FIGHTING. BUT WE SHOULD BE DOING THE CONSTANT RESUPPLY. A BURDEN OF PROOF SHOULD BE ON US ABOUT WHY WE WOULDN'T SUPPLY EVERY SINGLE WEAPON THEY REQUEST. >> SENATOR, I'LL PASS IT AROUND TO OTHER PEOPLE WITH QUESTIONS. I WANT TO STEP BACK A BIT HERE AND JUST TALK GENERALLY ABOUT WHAT WE'VE SEEN OVER THE PAST 3 1/2 WEEKS. I WOULD GUESS THAT WE PROBABLY SHARE A LOT OF SIMILARITIES IN OUR WORLD VIEWS AND HAVE OVER OUR LIFETIMES. I BELIEVE IN AMERICA EXCEPTIONALISM. I'VE ALWAYS BEEN A STRONG PROPONENT OF NATO. I BELIEVE IN WESTERN CIVILIZATION AND THE EXTRAORDINARY THINGS THAT HAVE COME FROM WESTERN CIVILIZATIONS RESPONSIBLE FOR FEEDING AND FREEING MORE PEOPLE THAN ANY OTHER CIVILIZATION KNOWN IN HUMANKIND. TALK ABOUT THE LAST 3, 3 1/2 WEEKS, HOW IMPORTANT IT'S BEEN
TO SEE NATO COME TOGETHER AGAIN, TO SEE NATO COME TOGETHER AGAIN, GERMANY STEPPING UP, LIBERAL DEMOCRACY, WESTERN DEMOCRACY TAKING ITS RIGHTFUL PLACE IN THE WORLD AND SHOWING THERE IS A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GOOD AND EVIL AND WE'RE ON THE SIDE OF GOOD. >> ABSOLUTELY. WE HAVE TO RECOGNIZE VLADIMIR PUTIN IS NOT A GUY WHO WILL BE STOPPED UNTIL SOMEONE STOPS HIM. FOR TWO DECADES HE'S ASSASSINATED POLITICAL OPPONENTS, SHOT DOWN AIRCRAFT IN SYRIA, GENOCIDE-LIKE BEHAVIOUR IN BIO AND CHEMICAL WEAPONS ATTACKS, AND AT NO POINT HAS HE BEEN STOPPED IN THE PAST. THAT BRINGS US TO THE POINT ABOUT THE LAST 3 1/2 WEEKS, WHAT WE HAVE IN THE 40-MILLION-PLUS CIVILIANS. IT'S NOT ZELENSKYY ALONE, BUT HE'S BEEN A MODEL OF COURAGE ON THE GLOBAL STAGE. AS HE'S DONE WHAT HE DID, HE'S DEFIED THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY'S ASSUMPTION THAT EVERY LEADER FACING A BIG ARMY WILL JUST CUT AND RUN. PEOPLE SAID IS HE GANDHI OR CHURCHILL FOR MONTHS IN THE INTEL SPACE RUNNING UP TO THIS MOMENT. IF MOST PEOPLE HAD TO BET, THEY ASSUMED HE WOULD CUT AND RUN. HE DIDN'T DO THAT. HE DECIDED THAT COURAGE REQUIRES STANDING UP AGAINST THE BULLY SOMETIMES, AND THE UKRAINIANS ARE FIGHTING NOT JUST ON BEHALF OF THEIR KIDS AND THEIR FUTURE BUT THEY'RE FIGHTING ON BEHALF OF THE WHOLE FREE WORLD AS YOU MENTIONED. THERE'S BOTH IDEALISM AND REALISM AT PLAY IN THIS MOMENT, AND WE NEED TO BE DOING EVERYTHING WE CAN TO HEM THE UKRAINIANS NOT SIMPLY LOSE MORE SLOWLY BUT ACTUALLY HAVE A SHOT AT WINNING. THE WORLD NEEDS THE UKRAINIANS TO WIN. THAT MEANS THE UKRAINIANS NEED TO BE ABLE TO KILL RUSSIANS AND TO KILL RUSSIANS THEY NEED FOR WEAPONS SYSTEMS. THEY HAVE A WILL TO FIGHT. WE KNOW WHO ZELENSKYY IS AND WHO THE UKRAINIANS ARE. HE ASKED YESTERDAY, WHO ARE THE AMERICANS AND WHO IS THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION? HE HAS THE COURAGE OF HIS CONVICTIONS. WE SHOULD AND WE SHOULD ACT LIKE IT. >> IT'S JONATHAN LEMIRE. IN THE LAST FEW MINUTES THE WHITE HOUSE ANNOUNCED TOMORROW PRESIDENT BIDEN WILL BE SPEAKING TO XI JINPING OF CHINA AND UKRAINE IS VERY MUCH ON THE AGENDA. I KNOW YOU HAVE SOME PRETTY STRONG FEELINGS ABOUT CHINA, SO I WANT TO GET YOUR SENSE HERE, WHAT WOULD YOU SAY PRESIDENT BIDEN'S MESSAGE SHOULD BE TOMORROW ON THAT CALL? AND DO YOU HARBOR ANY HOPES THAT XI JINPING, WHO MIGHT BE ONE OF THE FEW VOICES THAT PRESIDENT BIDEN WILL LISTEN TO, DO YOU THINK XI JINPING WILL TELL HIM TO KNOCK IT OFF MANY. >> RUSSIA HAS 11 TIME ZONES. THEY WERE ABLE TO MOVE ALL OF THEIR TROOPS BACK FROM THE FAR EAST TO STAGE THEM IN BELARUS ON THE EACH OF THE INVASION BECAUSE XI WAS GREEN LIGHT THIS. WE KNOW HE DIDN'T WANT THE INVASION TO DISRUPT THE OLYMPICS AS HE LIED TO THE WORLD ABOUT THE GENOCIDE THAT'S HAPPENING WITH THE UIGHUR, BUT HE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THE OLYMPICS WENT OFF WITHOUT A HITCH. BUT THEN, ONCE PUTIN WAS FREE TO INVADE, XI VIEWED IT AS A SCOUT RUN, A DRY RUN OEMPGSPERATION TO AT HOW THE U.S. AND THE WORLD MIGHT RESPOND TO XI'S AMBITIONS TO SEIZE TAIWAN. ULTIMATELY, HOPEFULLY, LOTS OF CONFLICTING INTEL ON HOW THE INNER RING AROUND XI ARE RESPONDING TO THIS, BUT
HOPEFULLY THEY'RE SEEING A WORLD HOPEFULLY THEY'RE SEEING A WORLD AND A WEST THAT HAS A LITTLE MORE WILL WHEN XI V XI GREEN LIGHTED THIS. PUTIN WANTED TO SEE THE U.S. AND THE WEST EMBARRASSED. BUT XI WANTED TO SEE THERE WOULDN'T BE MUCH FINANCIAL RESOLVE IN RESPONSE TO A COMPLETELY INDEFENSIBLE INVASION LIKE THIS IN UKRAINE AND HE WAS HOPING HE WOULD SEE A WORLD THAT WOULDN'T STAND UP WHEN HE PLANS TO INVADE TAIWAN. HOPEFULLY, PRESIDENT BIDEN LEADS WITH REALITY AND TRUTH ABOUT THE
Agree or disagree with this guys politics; I think he's right at least on this point.
Yeah I don't get this. My contacts in Brussels are also dumbfounded. Some are saying it's some back-channel corruption having backlash to special interests.
I don't know either way. But what the fuck is everyone suddenly doing, pretending there's a line to walk here.
It's this simple: Either Putin is insane, and nothing will stop him so the faster we reach that climax the better. Or, he is not insane, in which he won't turn it into a nuclear war, which means we aught to confront him as fast as possible.
I get why the UK isn't doing more, boris and his cunts are insanely corrupt and in the pockets of oligarchs. But the rest I don't get at all. It's like everyone is making excuses as to why they're not doing more, instead of explaining how they could do more and in what ways.
Creating a foreign policy around "But he has nukes" is beyond fucking idiotic and despicable. Everyone will have nukes. They aren't exotic tech. Better figure out now how to be an active military power in a world with nukes. US foreign policy seems to have been perverted by too many hippy-era boomers who thought nuclear weapons would mean no more big wars, and that a multi-polar world would actually be safer.
Don’t forget this guy is still a traitor. He didn’t convict Trump for extorting Ukraine. https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2020/02/politics/senate-impeachment-vote/
Imo. They are DEFENDING. Wtf
He says that with his fingers and toes crossed…