After Sen. JD Vance (R-OH) announced he was suspending DOJ nominees following Trump’s indictment, former Senate opponent Mitch McConnell and first woman to serve on a combat mission for the Marine Corp Amy McGrath lambasted him and his like-minded colleagues. , “These people are not serious about national security. They are not serious about the rule of law.
Vance announced that he intended to retain all Justice Department applicants in an effort to make “this Department run a little slower until Merrick Garland changes course and does his job properly.”
There is language in the middle where Vance tries to justify what he is doing by claiming that Trump is being unduly harassed, which suggests that Vance is not doing his job to defend the United States against all enemies and threats, foreign and nationals. Because even if he was right (and he isn’t), evidence shows that Donald Trump recklessly took, carelessly stored, lied, refused to return and, in two cases, shared our secret and highly sensitive defense information. .
We’re talking about the kind of material that if he gets ort “causes people to die”. We’re talking about the kind of material that puts everyone’s safety at risk if it comes out. This is what national security boils down to – the safety of the people of this country and the safety of the people working for this country in various capacities, from military to intelligence assets.
Instead of defending the United States, Vance defends Trump. Trump before the country. Trump before security. Trump in front of the army. Trump first, the United States at the bottom of the list.
US Marshal nominees aren’t targeted by Vance, and really, his show shouldn’t do much damage, but if a DOJ nominee gets blocked by him, it’ll be even more bad news for our national security.
However, the larger point is this: Faced with the endangerment of his country, with “death-causing” threat levels to the US military, Vance wonders how can he hold the US hostage to show Trump how much he cares.
What is lost in all of this is how Representatives and Senators should react. They should all, Democrats and Republicans alike, put this country first. There should be no doubt that the safety of this country comes before their allegiance to a man convicted of sexual assault who is currently facing criminal charges in two separate cases, with several more pending.
Yet we lack the security of knowing that all of our lawmakers put the security of this country and its people first.
A few days ago, McGrath, a retired United States Marine Corps lieutenant colonel who served as a congressman and advised a senior member of the United States House of Representatives Armed Services Committee on defense and foreign policy, noted“Any elected official who defends the actions of DJT is not serious about our national security.”
Alright, but before that, how about we stop recklessly harming our national security by preventing over 800 unprecedented military and defense positions from being filled. https://t.co/p9m3sgQ3QR
— Amy McGrath (@AmyMcGrathKY) June 12, 2023
She knows what she’s talking about. After flying 89 combat missions in Iraq and Afghanistan, McGrath served at the Pentagon as a Marine Corps liaison to the Department of State. She knows what is at stake.
Suddenly, our national security is a partisan issue. Only Democrats care? Only Democrats can succeed in prioritizing the security of our military, our relationships with our allies, and our defense plans? Republicans only manage to offer weak tea like “That sounds problematic, but don’t ask me to say anything in defense of the United States, which I serve.”
We are witnessing a tragic demonstration of self-interest in the country. Republicans aren’t stuck with a criminal defendant as their frontrunner. They actually have power and control over their own messaging and could accurately inform their constituents that what Trump is accused of and what is stated in the indictment is horrible. There are other presidential candidates, some even with star power, and there is plenty of time to change course.
If the Republicans don’t change course, they have only themselves to blame.
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Sarah has been accredited to cover President Barack Obama, then Vice President Joe Biden, 2016 Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton, and has exclusively interviewed President Nancy Pelosi on several occasions and exclusively covered her premiere. home appearance following the first impeachment of then-President Donald Trump.
Sarah is a two-time Telly award-winning video producer and a Fellow of the Society of Professional Journalists.
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