Posted on 11/20/2016 6:01:28 AM PST by maggief
Senators are pledging to take a firm line with Russia next year, setting up a potential conflict with incoming President Donald Trump.
Skeptical of Trump’s warmer relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, lawmakers in both parties are breaking with the incoming administration to carve out a tougher stance.
Lawmakers would like the president-elect to rein in Russia, but they’re also signaling that Congress will act on its own.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said when it comes to Russia he’s planning to be “a bit of a hard ass.”
“We cannot sit on the sidelines as a party and let allegations against a foreign government interfering in our election process go unanswered because it may have been beneficial to our case for the moment,” he said.
The Obama administration formally accused Russia of hacking and leaking Democratic National Committee (DNC) emails last month as lawmakers debated how to respond to Moscow.
Graham added that he is planning a multi-pronged approach: A package to better help allies in eastern Europe counter Russian aggression and a series of hearings to shine a spotlight on Russia's “misadventures.”
Graham’s closest ally, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), the chairman of the Armed Services Committee, separately warned Trump against another “reset” of U.S.-Moscow relations, arguing that he should be skeptical of Putin’s quest for a better relationship.
"We should place as much faith in such statements as any other made by a former KGB agent who has plunged his country into tyranny, murdered his political opponents, invaded his neighbors, threatened America's allies, and attempted to undermine America's elections," McCain said.
(Excerpt) Read more at thehill.com ...
Bunch of war mongers. Amazing how since the end of the Cold War these two clowns have been wrong about every foreign policy issue yet that has not caused them to rethink their approach. It is always Munich with these two.
So says Mc and his sock puppet graham.
Fail-safe clue to stop reading a news story: It quotes Lindsey Graham.
I think we should keep an eye on Russia but what are these two insignificant other Senators trying to do. They are both has beens and butt Buddy’s! I guess they need to be in the news.
“Maverick” is his name. The Media will soon be calling McCain and his girlfriend the “Bestest Conservatives Ever!”
The enemy within...
These troll Pubbies who have been carrying water for Dems for the last 8 years or longer need to be stopped by responsible Republican Senators. If they cannot be thrown out of the party they certainly can be ignored.
The Senate doesn’t GET to draw a firm line with anybody.
We saw how well that worked against Iran.
The President leads the way, especially in Trump’s case.
WTH is McCain’s major malfunction that he always seems to want American soldiers to die?
He would have been a VERY dangerous president.
We’ve survived the horrific assault on our liberties by obama.
Surviving a nuclear holocaust, that would have been more difficult.
He’s a dangerous and deranged man. Send him to visit the “moderates” again.
Linda is in the Hard Ass Party?
Memo to McCain and Graham: The constitution gives foreign policy solely to the President.
Remember, podesta called Lindsey Graham a “Republican ally in Congress” in one of the WikiLeaks.
I expect these two traitors to switch parties early in Trump’s first term.
They are the “Jumpin’ Jims” of this century.
They really are showing themselves to be idiots, and they won’t win on a foreign policy issue.
FLASHBACK:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323423804579024452583045962.html
The Saudi ambassador, Mr. Jubeir, has long been courting members of Congress who could pressure the administration to get more involved in Syria. He found early support from Republican Sens. John McCain of Arizona and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina.
(snip)
Mr. Petraeus in mid-2012 won White House approval to provide intelligence and limited training to Syrian rebels at the base, including in the use of arms provided by others. Saudi and Jordanian agents began vetting the fighters to be trained, said Arab diplomats and a former U.S. military official.
Prince Bandar has largely stayed out of Washington but held meetings with U.S. officials in the region. One was in September 2012. Sens. McCain and Graham, who were in Istanbul, met him in an opulent hotel suite on the banks of the Bosporus.
Mr. McCain said he made the case to Prince Bandar that the rebels weren’t getting the kinds of weapons they needed, and the prince, in turn, described the kingdom’s plans. The senator said that in succeeding months he saw “a dramatic increase in Saudi involvement, hands-on, by Bandar.”
(snip)
TRAITORS the whole lot.
I think McCain will be relieved of his little committees.
Remember Robert Byrd...... the aging drooling has been of a bygone age? He was tolerated till his death. So it will be with McCain. He will be tolerated but mostly politely ignored
“Memo to McCain and Graham: The constitution gives foreign policy solely to the President.”
For the sake of accuracy, that is not true. Read the constitution. Thankfully, congress has a lot of “say” in our foreign policy, including the declaration of war and the ratification of treaties. The latter issue was a concept that Obama conveniently ignored.
That said, McCain and Graham can pound sand.
They would have no value as dems. As fake ‘pubs they can cause trouble.
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