“The media should be ashamed of themselves. They should put theirselves in their shoes, and every other combat veteran’s shoes, before they go out there and criticize him.”
Washington, D.C. – On Sunday, U.S. Senator Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) appeared on CNN’s State of the Union with Jake Tapper to discuss President-elect Donald Trump’s cabinet picks and discuss the latest on the Syrian Civil War. The senator defended his friend and former colleague, Tulsi Gabbard, made the case for Pete Hegseth’s confirmation as Defense Secretary, and broke down the toppling of Assad’s regime in the Middle East.
Sen. Mullin’s full interview can be found here.
On the Assad family’s 53-year reign coming to an end:
“So, the [entity] that’s wounded the most here is Iran. Some stability will take place I believe in Syria now that Assad is gone. When you had Iran, who is an extreme terrorist government, and you have Russia, who’s controlling the airspace, and you’ve had Assad who’s been willing to use chemical weapons on his own citizens, then that is destabilization. I don’t know what the rebels are going to bring in, but I don’t know how you can get much worse than what you already had underneath the current regime.”
On Tulsi Gabbard’s qualifications to be Director of National Intelligence:
“Keep in mind, that when [Tulsi Gabbard] went over [to Syria] she was still, now she wasn’t over there in uniform, a captain in the National Guard. Since then, she’s moved to reserves in the Army. She has been promoted from Major to Lieutenant Colonel since then. She’s currently over the reserve unit in all of Oklahoma and Missouri. She has clearances and she’s able to do her job. I think she’s 100% qualified to be the next Director of National Intelligence and so I’m excited about her opportunity because she’s perfect for the position.”
On Pete Hegseth’s path to Senate confirmation:
“Pete’s doing exactly what he needs to do. He’s on Capitol Hill, he’s speaking with senators, there’s been absolutely no ‘noes’ from Republican senators at this point, he continues to make his case, and his case is something that when he sits down with you, he’s able to articulate very well. I think Pete will make an outstanding Secretary of Defense and I believe he’s going through the process. Now he has an uphill battle, but he’s taken the fight straight to Capitol Hill like he should. He’s gonna have a hearing in Senate Armed Services, he’ll have to answer tough questions, and I think he’ll be able to answer every one of them. At the end of the day, I believe Pete will be our next Secretary of Defense, and he’ll be perfect for the role.”
On the media’s disgusting attacks against Pete Hegseth:
“[The media has] never been there, they’ve never been in combat, they’ve never seen the horrific stuff that comes by that, they’ve never tasted the dirt in their mouth, they’ve never heard the horrible sounds in their ears, they’ve never had the sights that they can’t get rid of, they’ve never had the dreams in the middle of the night, and I think it’s hypocritical for them to even question that…
“The media should be ashamed of themselves. They should put theirselves in their shoes, and every other combat veteran’s shoes, before they go out there and criticize him.”
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