Mike Pompeo Claims Trump— Who Withheld Military Aid — Showed ‘Resolve’ for Ukraine
Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo claimed on Friday that the United States expressed “resolve” for Ukraine “four years prior” – despite his boss, former President Donald Trump, attempting a quid-pro-quo with Ukraine over U.S. assistance to that country.
“We’ve seen a Russian dictator now terrorize the Ukrainian people because America didn’t demonstrate the resolve that we did for the four years prior,” said Pompeo at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Although the Trump administration gave military assistance to Ukraine, it was not without controversy. In 2019, Trump sought to have the Ukrainians investigate President Joe Biden, then a presidential candidate, and his son, Hunter Biden, in exchange for the military aid. As a result, Trump was impeached by the House of Representatives but acquitted in the Senate impeachment trial.
“In the last 12 months we’ve seen the now it’s okay to steal something as long as it’s worth less than a 1,000 bucks. A minor incursion, if you will, into Walgreen’s,” said Pompeo, referring to a lack of prosecutions in some major cities that has included not going after certain retail theft. Additionally, Walgreen’s recently closed five of its stores in San Francisco in response to numerous thefts in those stores.
The “minor incursion” quote was a reference to Biden saying last month that a “minor incursion” by Russia into Ukraine may cause disagreement within NATO as to how to respond. He later clarified that any invasion by Russia, no matter the scope, “will be met with severe and coordinated economic response.”
Pompeo has come under fire for what critics have said was praise of Putin. In January, he told Fox News that Putin “is a very talented statesman. He has lots of gifts. He was a KGB agent, for goodness sakes. He knows how to use power. We should respect that.”
This week, Russia militarily invaded Ukraine, leading to condemnations and sanctions from the United States and U.S. allies.
Watch above, via CSPAN.
