Speaker 1: Joe Biden left Americans behind in Afghanistan, so it's sad
Speaker 1: but not surprising that he seems to be doing the
Speaker 1: same in Gaza. We know that Americans are being held
Speaker 1: hostage by Hamas in Gaza, So what is this administration
Speaker 1: doing about it? If anything, I never thought there would
Speaker 1: be a day where we would have a president so
Speaker 1: unconcerned about leaving Americans behind enemy lines. We'll talk to
Speaker 1: one Senator who's trying to do something about it. Senator
Speaker 1: Marshall Blackburn of Tennessee is putting pressure on this administration
Speaker 1: to formally recognize those Americans trapped in Gaza as hostages
Speaker 1: under federal law. We'll talk about the importance of that
Speaker 1: distinction and what she's trying to do to bring these
Speaker 1: Americans home. We'll also get her take on the conflict
Speaker 1: more broadly, and the funding fight that's taking place on
Speaker 1: Capitol Hill over Israel funding and Ukraine funding. Stay tuned
Speaker 1: for Senator Marshall Blackburn. Senator Blackburn, it's always an honor
Speaker 1: to have you on the show. You have rightfully been
Speaker 1: putting pressure on the Biden administration to formally recognize the
Speaker 1: American citizens who are being held hostage in Gaza under
Speaker 1: federal law. Why is that distinction important? And also why
Speaker 1: has this administration not done that?
Speaker 2: It is a puzzling why they have not done that, Lisa.
Speaker 2: When you look at our code, our laws and you
Speaker 2: read eighteen USC. One two three, what you see is
Speaker 2: the definition of a hostage. It's someone that is being
Speaker 2: held or detained against their will and an entity or
Speaker 2: government or organization that is making a demand of our government.
Speaker 2: So that is how we classify that. And we all
Speaker 2: know of the Israelis that were taken hostage and taken
Speaker 2: into Gaza, and we continue to pray for these families
Speaker 2: with loss of life and with hostages that have been taken.
Speaker 2: And then you look at the situation in Gaza and
Speaker 2: what we realize after Jake Sullivan was on Face the
Speaker 2: Nation last weekend was he said, we have about five
Speaker 2: hundred Americans, aid workers and civilians who were there visiting
Speaker 2: friends and families. Five hundred Americans who were there. The
Speaker 2: situation is challenging their negotiating with Hamas to allow these
Speaker 2: individuals to leave Gaza. Now we know that Egypt had
Speaker 2: said they were ready to receive foreign nationals who were
Speaker 2: stuck in Gaza. Israel had said yes, let's get them out,
Speaker 2: but it was Hamas who was making demands. And then
Speaker 2: John Kirby, the spokesperson for the National Security Council, comes
Speaker 2: out and reiterate said and then you also have someone
Speaker 2: from the State Department that is reiterating that. So I
Speaker 2: don't know why they do not want to say, Hamas,
Speaker 2: we consider this to be hostage taking if you are
Speaker 2: not allowing them to leave, and you are making demands
Speaker 2: of us, do not touch these American citizens. And that
Speaker 2: is the kind of force that when you're dealing with
Speaker 2: a terrorist group, they understand force, and when you start
Speaker 2: trying to appease them, they are not going to pay
Speaker 2: attention to you and your demands.
Speaker 1: You know, that's probably the best way to sum up
Speaker 1: this administration as appeasement. You know, when you look at
Speaker 1: a rhyme, when you look at how they dealt with
Speaker 1: the Taliban and exiting Afghanistan. Do you know, Senator, what attempts,
Speaker 1: if any, have been made to try to bring or
Speaker 1: people home. I mean, are are they giving you any
Speaker 1: answer on what attempts they're taking.
Speaker 2: I've sent a letter over to the White House to
Speaker 2: Jake Sullivan to ask what are you doing and see
Speaker 2: the American people need to know. They know that there
Speaker 2: are American citizens who are not being permitted to leave Gaza.
Speaker 2: They know that Hamas is in charge in Gaza. They
Speaker 2: know that Hamas is making demands and trying to negotiate
Speaker 2: with the US. So what are these demands? Are they
Speaker 2: looking for more aid? Because we also know that AID
Speaker 2: is not making it to the Palestinian people. We know
Speaker 2: that Hamas is intercepting that aid. This is why Israel
Speaker 2: has been consistent in saying please, if you're in Gaza City,
Speaker 2: move to the south, get down to the Rapa Gate.
Speaker 2: And of course the AID Agency it would be helpful
Speaker 2: for them to be able to centralize this ade. But
Speaker 2: it has just been perplexing that there has been so
Speaker 2: little said about the Americans that are there in gossip.
Speaker 1: You know, sata I wanted to ask you. Biden launched this.
Speaker 1: White House launched its first ever national strategy to counter
Speaker 1: Islamophobia at a time when we've seen anti Semitic incidents
Speaker 1: increase by nearly four hundred percent since the terror attacks
Speaker 1: in Israel. I mean, we see it on college campuses,
Speaker 1: we're seeing it across the country. It's not being targeted
Speaker 1: at Muslims, right, This hate is being targeted at Jews.
Speaker 1: So why can't this administration just find the moral clarity
Speaker 1: to condemn what is happening to Jews? I mean, you
Speaker 1: know this isn't being directed at Muslims, So why why
Speaker 1: do they feel compelled to do this? You know, what
Speaker 1: do you think is behind that?
Speaker 2: We know from this administration and the Obama administration, and
Speaker 2: of course some of the same people are running the
Speaker 2: show on these issues, that they have been sympathetic to Iran.
Speaker 2: That's why you had the Iran nuclear deal, the twenty
Speaker 2: fifteen deal. Now you've recently had the six billion dollar
Speaker 2: ransom payment to Iran. So we know that there is
Speaker 2: that sympathy to them, that thinking that they could appease
Speaker 2: them and move them to a point that they would
Speaker 2: give up on trying to construct nuclear weapons, that they
Speaker 2: would give up on trying to push back on the US.
Speaker 2: But what you have to realize is that Russia, China, Iran,
Speaker 2: North Korea, that's your new access of evil. Iran is
Speaker 2: the world's largest state sponsor of terrorism. They give a
Speaker 2: loss about one hundred million dollars a year. They make
Speaker 2: the same payment over to has look, same payment over
Speaker 2: to the Hohofis, same payment over to ISIS Syria and
Speaker 2: also to isis Arak, and they're the ones that are
Speaker 2: funding these acts now, Lisa, I think also we have
Speaker 2: to look at some of the people that are there
Speaker 2: in the administration. You have Robert Malley and he was
Speaker 2: a big part of that first Iran nuclear deal team.
Speaker 2: And also Arianne to Boudubai and she was a part
Speaker 2: of the first team and now this second team. She
Speaker 2: also is chief of staff to the Deputy Secretary over
Speaker 2: at the Department of Defense. These people have top level
Speaker 2: security clearances. Now. They also were quite involved with the
Speaker 2: Iran Experts Initiative, which was second generation RUNI that were
Speaker 2: in the US that were going to help change the
Speaker 2: image of Iran. This all started before that twenty fifteen
Speaker 2: a raw nuclear deal. Now Robert Mally's security clearance has
Speaker 2: been pulled and he's been suspended, but Miss Tabadabai is
Speaker 2: still with her clearance and still employed over at the
Speaker 2: Department of Defense. So you have these sympathizers that are there.
Speaker 2: These people ought to be fired. They should never have
Speaker 2: had these these clearances. We know for a fact We've
Speaker 2: seen emails where Miss t Badabay was coming to the
Speaker 2: Hill to testify and she emailed emailed from her federal
Speaker 2: account emailed over to someone at the Iran Foreign Ministry
Speaker 2: to say, Hey, I'm going over to the old testify.
Speaker 2: What do you want me to say? Now? We should
Speaker 2: put our nation and our citizens and our safety and
Speaker 2: our security first. We should put our allies before our enemies.
Speaker 2: But this group, I question what they're doing.
Speaker 1: It certainly paints a picture of how we got here
Speaker 1: when you put it out that way. I also just
Speaker 1: think this administration should be able to condemn the anti
Speaker 1: Semitism we're seeing in America without bringing Islamophobia into it,
Speaker 1: which is not the issue at hand right We're seeing
Speaker 1: these attacks against Jews, not Muslims, and they should be
Speaker 1: clear in that. But you know, there's some arguments on
Speaker 1: Capitol Hill about how to do funding. You know, the
Speaker 1: House is trying to decouple Ukraine and Israel Aid. Also
Speaker 1: some conversations about tying some of the Ukraine funding to
Speaker 1: border policy changes. What would you like to see happen
Speaker 1: in this funding fight and how do you think this
Speaker 1: is all going to go down?
Speaker 2: Israel's funding needs to go first, and we should move
Speaker 2: quickly on that. I'm pleased that the House is taking
Speaker 2: that up. I think the step of Ukraine and the
Speaker 2: border to together is a good step. Something's got to
Speaker 2: be done at the border. Of the month of October,
Speaker 2: you had about forty Iranians. Pakistanis over one hundred Russians.
Speaker 2: You had two thousand Chinese foreign nationals that came across
Speaker 2: that southern border. You have a terrorists that have been
Speaker 2: apprehended one hundred and fifty one terrorists this year alone.
Speaker 2: These numbers are astounding. We don't know who is in
Speaker 2: the god Aways. You have to secure that border. When
Speaker 2: it comes to Ukraine, you don't want Putin to win,
Speaker 2: and what you have to do. What you've got to
Speaker 2: do is to make certain that there's transparency and accountability
Speaker 2: on any money that goes to you.
Speaker 1: I agree with that, Senator. It's sad to see where
Speaker 1: we are today. You talked about this new axis of evil.
Speaker 1: It just feels like we're no longer the superpower that
Speaker 1: we once were. It's pretty disheartening to see a senator
Speaker 1: appreciate you taking the time to join the show. It's
Speaker 1: always an honor to talk to you really always love
Speaker 1: having you on. Thanks so much for making time for us.
Speaker 2: Oh, thank you so much. Good to join you. Thank you.
Speaker 1: I'm the Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee. Appreciate her for
Speaker 1: taking the time to join the show. Appreciate you guys
Speaker 1: at home for listening every Monday and Thursday, but you
Speaker 1: can listen throughout the week. I want to thank John
Speaker 1: Cassio and my producer for putting the show together. Until
Speaker 1: next time,