Tennessee senator on future international relations with Israel and Ukraine under Trump
WASHINGTON (CBS, KYMA/KECY) - Margaret Brennan spoke with Tennessee Senator Bill Hagerty on Sunday about the future of U.S. international relations and geopolitics under a Trump administration.
Hagerty previously served as the U.S. ambassador to Japan during the first Trump administration.
When asked if he sees President-Elect Trump's sweeping mandate as an "unrestrained presidency," Hagerty said the following:
"I think this is a presidency that has a mandate like we haven't seen, as you mentioned, in 36 years. The American public has spoken loud and clear...there are a number of places where Washington has been out of touch with the American people...The American people want sovereignty protected here in America before we spend our funds and resources protecting the sovereignty of another nation. You think about it, we've sent $175 billion of U.S. aid to Ukraine. That's more than three times the entire annual budget of the U.S. Marine Corps. I've been one of the few senators in the United States Senate who has voted and has opposed every cent of this Ukraine aid. I've been listening to the American people. We need to focus on our own issues first. And I've taken a lot of heat over it, from Mitch McConnell from the Wall Street Journal, but this is what the American people spoke up and want us to do. We should never have been in Ukraine."
Brennan asked Hagerty if there will be no more aid to Ukraine, Hagerty said, "President Trump will find a way to deal with this. I'm not going to get ahead of him. I'm certain that he's going to find a way to navigate this that's in the interest of the American people and will stop the carnage. Look, what's happened in Ukraine is terrible. People are dying. They continue to die. But we need to stop this."
During the interview, Brennan and Hagerty talked about he future of U.S. international relations and geopolitics under a Trump administration in dealing with the Middle East.
Brennan brought up the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying he spoke with the president-elect "three times in recent days" to discuss Iran as well as a peace plan. When asked if he knew what the content of those conversations were, Hagerty said: "No, and if I did, I wouldn't discuss them...because that has to be navigated very carefully."
Brennan also brought up that Hamas is now looking for total peace following the president-elect's victory. When asked Hagerty if he believes there will be a hostage deal negotiated under President-Elect Trump, he said:
"I'd like to see what Hamas means by this statement. But it seems that the entire environment is shifting right now...Because they see new leadership coming in. And I'm encouraged by that, and I think we'll have new opportunities to, again, President Trump was able to deliver peace through strength. I think that's on the way, and I'm optimistic what it might lead to."
To watch more of Brennan's interview with Hagerty, click here.
