In case you missed it — Senator Tom Cotton (R-Arkansas) joined Maria Bartiromo on “Sunday Morning Futures” today to discuss President Trump’s military strikes on the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen and Senate Republicans’ work undoing four years of disastrous polices under Joe Biden.
In part, Senator Cotton said:
“What all of those adversaries want is to upend the United States led order that has benefited our citizens for so long by keeping America safe and prosperous. The strikes against the Houthi rebels in Yemen last night was long overdue-- going back to the October 7 attack against Israel. They’ve been shutting down shipping in the Red Sea that’s dangerous not just for America’s sailors who are there but also, it’s bad for your wallet here in America. It drives up shipping cost which drives up the prices you pay. Yet, Joe Biden let our ships let our sailors just sit in the Red Sea like sitting ducks. President Trump made it clear that it was long overdue. We’re not going to allow it anymore. We’re going to protect our interests, and he also made it clear to Iran that we know what they’re up to. Where did a bunch of goat herders in Yemen get one way attack drones and cruise missiles-- they got them from Iran. So, while we’re degrading those rebels power right now, we’re also sending a signal to Iran that they need to knock it off. They also – as President Trump said to you last week- have to end their nuclear weapons program. We’d love to have a negotiated deal, in which they surrender that program, but we can also do it as he put it, ‘the other way’.”
Senator Cotton’s full interview may be found here and below.
Maria Bartiromo: Joining me now for more on all of this is Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton. He is Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. Senator, thanks so much for joining us this morning.
Senator Tom Cotton: Thank you, Maria.
Bartiromo: First, I want to get your take on what you just heard from Chris Wright, the Energy Secretary, where do you see the priorities in terms of President Trump’s Executive Orders and what you can do as a leading senator in terms of codifying those into law so they cannot be undone in four years.
Senator Cotton: First, I’m glad we closed out last year’s business on Friday passing spending bills that will keep the government funded through September. Chuck Schumer really has no one to blame but himself, the Senate appropriations committee last year passed 11 of 12 spending bills—more than half of those were unanimous and he didn’t bring a single one up for a vote. So, Chuck Schumer right now is reaping what he sowed last year. By finishing out last year‘s business, It allows us now to move on and focus on the big budget bill that we plan to pass that is going to make the 2017 tax cuts permanent, it’s going to improve other tax cuts, going to fund our military, fund border security, and as Chris Wright was talking about-- fund some of the presidents energy initiatives, unleash American energy production and lower cost for hard working Americans and businesses. Not just at home in your electricity bill or heating bill but everything you buy at the store has to be produced and it has to be shipped there- that uses American energy. We want to make it less expensive so the prices you pay at the grocery store are lower.
Bartiromo: And in terms of the priorities, in terms of which Executive Orders you believe Congress needs to codify?
Senator Cotton: Well, there’s a lot of them, Maria, especially when it comes to the spending cuts that President Trump is unified with the help of Elon Musk and his team. We can pass those at a simple majority level. I hope they’ll be submitting a package that will make those permanent, also as we move past the major budget legislation that will cut taxes, secure our border, rebuild our military, and unleash American energy production as we move into next year’s spending bills, I also expect it will be providing more of the resources that we need to keep Americans safe and prosperous while also cutting back on the waste that we’ve seen in the news over the last couple of months since President Trump took office.
Bartiromo: It seems like President Trump’s second term here is different on the foreign policy front because you’ve got this intertwined relationship with Iran, China, Russia, and North Korea. What do you want to say about last night’s Yemini strikes and what that message is to Iran and how that intertwined relationship of the four hostile nations is different this time around.
Senator Cotton: Well, what all of those adversaries want is to upend the United States led order that has benefited our citizens for so long by keeping America safe and prosperous. The strikes against the Houthi rebels in Yemen last night was long overdue-- going back to the October 7 attacks against Israel. They’ve been shutting down shipping in the Red Sea that’s dangerous not just for America’s sailors who are there but also, it’s bad for your wallet here in America. It drives up shipping cost which drives up the prices you pay. Yet, Joe Biden let our ships--let our sailors just sit in the Red Sea like sitting ducks. President Trump made it clear that it was long overdue. We’re not going to allow it anymore. We’re going to protect our interests, and he also made it clear to Iran that we know what they’re up to. Where did a bunch of goat herders in Yemen get one way attack drones and cruise missiles-- they got them from Iran. So, while we’re degrading those rebels power right now, we’re also sending a signal to Iran that they need to knock it off. They also – as President Trump said to you last week- have to end their nuclear weapons program. We’d love to have a negotiated deal, in which they surrender that program, but we can also do it as he put it, ‘the other way’.
Bartiromo: It seems to me that it was a serious message to Iran, but are you expecting retaliation?
Senator Cotton: Well, those rebels in Yemen have been striking shipping and been aiming at US naval ships for some time I suspect after last night they got the picture that Donald Trump is not Joe Biden. He’s not just going to have our sailors on the red sea like sitting ducks and if they continue the strikes then he’ll hit back even harder than he did last night-- same thing with Iran. You think they would’ve learned the lesson over the last 18 months after what Israel has done to Hamas and Hezbollah in Lebanon and directly to Iran with the United States support. But if they don’t get the lesson, then, of course I believe President Trump will strike back even twice as hard and once again, the most important threat is the threat of Iran’s nuclear weapons program. It’s not just a threat to Israel or our friends in the Middle East. They’re also building intercontinental missiles under the flimsy cover of a space launch program that could strike the United States in just a number of years so this is a direct and eminent threat to the United States. That’s why President Trump has said repeatedly we’re in the final days of this dispute over Iran’s nuclear program. It’s really up to them how it ends.
Bartiromo: And Senator, what is China’s role? How much of China’s participation do you see here?
Senator Cotton: Well, China has been supporting Iran in numerous ways for instance for four years under Joe Biden, China bought Iranian oil, in violation of sanctions against Iran. Joe Biden looked the other way. Donald Trump is not, he has imposed maximum pressure back in Iran, squeezing both Iran and China. But, as I write in my new book ‘7 Things You Can’t Say About China’ their ultimate goal is to replace the United States as the world‘s dominant, economic and military, super power and that’s why they continue to show up around the world supporting countries like Iran or North Korea or Russia because they’re trying to keep America on the back-foot.
Bartiromo: We will leave it there. Senator It’s great to see you this morning. Thanks very much for being here.
Senator Cotton: Thank you, Maria.