Jake Tapper Confronts Dem Congresswoman Over Tweet Calling Gen. John Kelly an ‘Extremist’
Jake Tapper had Democratic Rep. Barbara Lee on State of the Union this morning and he brought up her tweet claiming that Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly’s appointment as White House chief of staff is “putting our executive branch in the hands of an extremist”:
By putting Gen John Kelly in charge, Pres Trump is militarizing the White House & putting our executive branch in the hands of an extremist.
— Rep. Barbara Lee (@RepBarbaraLee) July 28, 2017
“First of all, there are those who say people who served in the military should be able to integrate back into society,” Tapper said of the tweet. “But second of all, why is he, and perhaps most importantly, why do you think he’s an extremist?”
“Well let me first say, I come from a military family,” the California congresswoman started. “My dad served in World War II, in Korea, and so I respect and honor the military and recognize the sacrifices that all of our military men and women make, as well as General Kelly and his history and his sacrifices.”
“What I’m talking about is his tenure as Homeland Security secretary and the very extreme policies of promoting family dislocation, deportation of innocent men and women and children, breaking up families, promoting a Muslim ban, promoting a wall between the United States and Mexico,” Lee continued.
“Those are extreme policies. And so this is very troublesome to me, to have this kind of power now centralized in the White House, because these are very serious matters and these are extreme policies.
“But believe you me, as it relates to his service in the military, again coming from a military family, I recognize and honor the service men and women of our country,” Lee concluded.
President Donald Trump announced on Friday afternoon the Kelly would replace an embattled Reince Priebus, whose tenure as White House chief of staff was marked by infighting and fairly consistent premonitions that he would not survive very long in the post. The former RNC chair was put out of his misery following a week in which new-communications director Anthony Scaramucci waged a very-public war against him.
Watch above, via CNN.
[image via screengrab]
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