Kasich: Talk of North Korea strikes 'bluster'
Says U.S. needs to lead a coalition that can face threat.
Ohio Gov. WASHINGTON —
John Kasich denounced as “bluster and threats” suggestions the United States use military force to eliminate the nuclear weapons and long-range missile programs being developed in North Korea.
During an interview Sunday on “NBC’s Meet the Press,” Kasich warned that talk in Washington of attacking the Pyongyang regime is “getting carried away” and the Trump administration should instead focus on tightening international sanctions to “squeeze” North Korea.
“In the beginning I think the president by putting pressure on North Korea was doing the right thing,” Kasich said. “But it’s getting carried away.”
“And bluster and threats and throwing around the fact that we’re going to be engaged in some kind of a war that could involve nuclear weapons or result in the death of millions of people, I think is just not right,” Kasich said.
Kasich was referring to last week’s prediction by Republican Sen. Lindsay Graham of South Carolina that “there’s a three-in-10 chance we use the military option” against North Korea. In an interview with The Atlantic, Graham said if North Korea tests one more nuclear device, the chance of an attack by the United States would increase to 70 percent. In the interview, Graham said North Korea “comes up all the time” when he plays golf with President Donald Trump.
“I don’t think it’s correct foreign policy,” Kasich said. “The fact is the United States needs to put together a coa- lition, the same way we did with Iran, to put the kind of pressure on both the Chinese and the Koreans. We’ve not done that,” adding “regardless of what they say, we haven’t done it. You need to squeeze them.”
Crippled by international sanctions, Iran in 2015 agreed to curb its uranium enrich- ment program and subject itself to international inspec- tions. The deal was negotiated between Iran and a coa- lition of the United States, Russia, China, France, Great Britain and Germany.
During a 2015 interview with “CNN’s State of the Union,” Kasich criticized the Iranian accord, saying he has not met “many people here in the country, who like this agreement. They think it endangers our allies and us.”
When NBC moderator Chuck Todd pointed out Trump opposed the Iranian nuclear deal, Kasich acknowl- edged “maybe the deal was flawed. But it got (Iran) to the table because the pres- sure that was put on them economically was severe.”
Pyongyang, which is under United Nations sanctions because of its nuclear weapons program, this year tested a long-range missile that could reach the United States. But experts doubt North Korea has mastered the ability to attach a nuclear warhead to the missile.
Wants tax overhaul, but not current plan
In addition, Kasich said while he supports the Republican plan to overhaul the tax code and reduce taxes, he warned the federal debt will continue to increase without restraining federal spending.
“This bill is not going to pay for itself; everybody knows that,” Kasich said. “As debt gets higher and higher and higher it slows the economy down.”