I think Pete was being pragmatic or blisteringly obvious for everyone. He may want to be a little more nuanced in his public assessment, but his honesty is refreshing and it’s the damn truth. To believe otherwise is totally not looking at reality. Also, if we/USA walk away from Ukraine, Putin will own the whole damn country. IMO
“”I stand by the comments that I made on that first day in the Ukraine Contact Group — and that’s for all the press out there, who it’s difficult for them to understand that,” Hegseth told reporters Friday.”
“The reality of U.S. troops in Ukraine is unlikely. The reality of Ukraine membership in NATO as a part of negotiated settlement, unlikely,” he said.”
This idiot was a JAG Officer like Lindsey Graham.
Does Wicker want to go there with DOGE?
https://www.opensecrets.org/members-of-congress/roger-wicker/contributors?cid=N00003280&cycle=2012
Contributors 2007 - 2012
Top 20 contributors to Campaign Committee
3 EADS North America $42,500 $9,900 $32,600
4 General Atomics Yes Yes $37,900 $12,900 $25,000
5 Chevron Corp Yes Yes $36,300 $21,300 $15,000
Contributors 2021 - 2022
Rank Contributor Total Individuals PACs
1 Lockheed Martin $71,525 $60,525 $11,000
2 Seemann Composites $57,100 $57,100 $0
Wicker: Air Force Awards $48M Contract to Develop Unmanned Aircraft in Columbus, Miss.
January 4, 2018
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, R-Miss., a senior member of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee, today congratulated Aurora Flight Sciences for winning a $48 million Air Force contract to continue development of Orion unmanned aircraft. . .
https://sunlightfoundation.com/2008/01/16/new-boss-same-as-the-old-boss/
New Boss Same as the Old Boss
by Ellen Miller Jan 16, 2008 3:34 pm
A “two-fer” is how U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) termed his $6 million earmark for a defense contractor in his home state. He placed the earmark in a defense appropriations bill that became law in November. Despite not being requested by the Department of Defense, the funds are going for unmanned military aircraft research and development. John Pruett at POGO’s blog called it “Wicker’s Unmanned Aerial Pork.” By terming it a two-fer, Wicker was bragging how his actions accomplished the duel goals of supporting national defense and job-creation back home. What he didn’t say is that his top campaign contributor was being rewarded handsomely in the deal as well. That’s the real “two-fer.”
Last month, when Trent Lott jumped to K Street, Haley Barbour, Mississippi’s governor, appointed Wicker, a seven-term congressman from Tupelo, to the seat. Barbour said he chose Wicker because he shared Lott’s mainstream conservative philosophy. Maybe so…But he also got a guy, who like Lott, knows how to bring home the pork. Over the last several years, Wicker, as a member of the Appropriations Committee defense subcommittee, developed a close relationship with the Northern Virginia-based Aurora Flight Science. In 2005, Aurora opened an aircraft assembly plant in Wicker’s Northeast Mississippi district. And since then, the company has become Wicker’s top contributor, giving the then congressman $13,000 in 2006, according to Center for Responsive Politics data. Aurora has flown the congressman and staff on a private jet from Washington to Mississippi to attend a company event. And in 2006, Wicker’s chief of staff left to be Aurora’s lobbyist. And according to research by Taxpayers for Common Sense, Wicker submitted a $5 million earmark for Miltec Research and Technology, another defense-related company based in his district. Miltec gave Wicker $7,000 in 2006.
In 2005, Lott bragged about his ability to bring home the bacon. “The way I do it is, I fold them into bills where you can’t find it…I’ve been around here long enough to know how to bury it.” Congress’ new ethics rules have made it harder to fold things into bills where no one can find them. Lucky for Wicker, he doesn’t seem all that concerned about hiding his pork scalps.
He knows they will wave the Red N flag at Russia saying U must be in N.
Thet they will claim that none of Ukraine's territory ever be sacrificed.
But Trump is putting them on notice. Start to wave that flag or start to make that claim and you are OUT OF THERE.
Another candidate to be primaried out.
The most important point that everyone here is missing is that the US essentially told the Euro’s that the US did not have enough resources to continue its “big dog” role in NATO, due to US’ concerns in the Pacific.
This is disastrous in Europe, not because the Euro’s can’t afford more defense spending, but because it ensures a future breakup of what Euro unity exists now, new smaller alliances, even heavier arming than Trump’s “5%”, and eventually a war in Europe that will most likely make WW2 look like a walk in the flower garden. (Modern weapons’ lethality and likely, nukes involved.) The history here is NOT ambiguous.
However, even more concerning is what it tells us about the future regarding China. It is very clear Trump’s defense and National Security team expect a major conflict with China. :-(
Wicker is Deep State.
I suppose Speaker Johnson can replace him as Chair of that committee...? We can’t afford to have flies in the ointment when trying to save the country.
I remember some of the Zeepers here telling us that Ukraine would NEVER get into NATO...so why aren’t they here defending Hegseth, or Trump for that matter?
That said, Wicker should have ended his comment right there. Instead, Wicker makes a similar mistake on the other side when he trashes Tucker Carlson who is a valuable resource against globalist corruption.
And there is no rookie excuse for the old RINO Wicker.
You got a problem Wicker, keep it to yourself.
Well Pete’s comments were accurate.😏
That headline can be read to mean two exactly opposite things. Pretty sure it is intentional.