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McCain on Foreign Policy: The Interview
Pajamas Media’s Roger Simon and Claudia Rossett sat down with John McCain for a wide-ranging video interview.
He will make Obama look like a pretender (which he is) when the debates turn to foreign policy and what needs to be done to keep America safe.
Some highlights:
ROSETT: On a somewhat related topic, North Korea, would you remove North Korea from the terrorism list?
MCCAIN: I would not. I didn’t believe in the KEDO agreement that President Clinton made, and I don’t believe in this one. I’d like to. I wish that I could, but it’s the old Reagan thing about “Trust, but verify.” The North Koreans have a very clear record.
And, look, I’m not on the intelligence committee. I’m not revealing any secret information or anything. But I think we know that that facility that was bombed in Syria by the Israelis, which provoked surprisingly no reaction from Syrians or anybody else, that there are allegations — and I have no proof of it — but there are allegations of North Korean involvement in that. Well, come on, let’s understand.
The other thing that continuously offends me, Claudia, is I’m a big — I’m an idealist. I will admit to being an idealist, okay, whether it be Rwanda, Darfur, Bosnia, you know, I’m an idealist. But I also hope it’s tempered by a practical view of things too. But this is the most horrible regime probably on earth - that has got hundreds of thousands of people in the gulag. They’re terrible. So the regime offends me, just in their terrible mistreatment and abuse of their own people.
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ROSETT: In your article you also wrote about revising the G8, kicking out Russia and bringing in Brazil and India. How would you actually broach that to the —
MCCAIN: Look, Mr. Putin does not share any of our G8 principals and values. I mean, it’s just a fact; we know that. He has now designated his “successor” so he can stay in power forever. He seems to derive some kind of, in my view, almost immature pleasure in sticking his thumb in our eye. I mean, please, some of it is gratuitous that I just don’t think he shares our values.
And I would like to see other countries like Brazil, the emerging economic power in our hemisphere, India, obviously, who will share our values and our principals to be — for us to meet. And I think we could do some things that would have some concrete results. And I don’t see where Putin shares any of those goals.
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ROSETT: This is going out over the Internet. If you could speak directly to Osama bin Laden, what would you say to him?
MCCAIN: Osama, I’m going to get you. Even if I have to follow you to the gates of hell, I’ll bring you to justice. Thank you.
One thing to say: McCain for President!
Go Johnny, Go!