Tulsi Gabbard: Our leaders don’t see the consequences to their rhetoric
Former Democratic congresswomen discusses the ‘dangerous’ narrative leaders in Washington are pushing over Russian conflict on 'Tucker Carlson Tonight.'
Former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard obliterated Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS) for suggesting that the U.S. could enter a nuclear war with Russia in defense of Ukraine as Russian troops amass along the country’s border.
"Anyone who would propose or even consider what he is saying as an option must be insane, a sociopath or a sadist," Gabbard told "Tucker Carlson Tonight" on Wednesday.
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Sen. Wicker made the startling comment during an on-air interview where he was asked about the escalating situation abroad. Wicker, who sits on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said that he is ruling nothing out as a potential response to defend Ukraine’s sovereignty against Russia and its leader, President Vladimir Putin.
"I would not rule out American troops on the ground," Wicker said, adding, that "We don’t rule out first-use nuclear action."
Gabbard told Carlson that neoconservatives in both the Democratic and Republican parties are courting global turmoil with their current overtures toward Russia and its leader.
WASHINGTON, DC - NOVEMBER 03: Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS) (Photo by Joshua Roberts/Getty Images)
"Let's go and launch a nuclear attack that would start a war that would destroy the American people, our country and the world and oh, also, the Ukrainians so that we can save Ukraine’s democracy? I mean, it literally is insane," Gabbard said.
"And the crazy thing is, Senator Wicker is not an outlier," she explained. "You are hearing the same kind of rhetoric coming from Democrats and Republicans in Congress and the administration and in the media no problem with this because they actually agree with this. They are pushing this same narrative themselves."
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The Russian troops assembled at its border with Ukraine sends a clear signal to Kyiv, Europe and the United States that Russia might finally be ready to reincorporate Ukraine into Russia’s sphere of influence, severely increasing the risk of a major military escalation in Europe’s eastern frontier.
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Ukraine’s defense minister, Oleksiy Reznikov, warned of a "bloody massacre" if Russia dared to invade Ukraine and the White House signaled that there would be a "real cost" to any Russian aggression against Ukraine.
President Biden spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin Tuesday in a high-stakes phone call to de-escalate the crisis. Biden warned Putin that the U.S. is prepared to impose "severe consequences," including stifling economic sanctions, if Russia were to violate Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. National security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters after the phone call that, in order to deter Russian aggression, "things we did not do in 2014 we are prepared to do now."
A nuclear response would "destroy the world as we know it," Gabbard warned.
"We are being pushed closer and closer to a hot war, a nuclear war" by "the same neocons and neo libs in Washington who dragged our country into regime change wars in places like Iraq and Libya and Syria," she said.
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"There are consequences to leaders in our country, influential people in our country to throwing things out like a first use nuclear attack is on the table. This directly undermines our national security, and it directly puts the American people and our country and the world at risk."
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