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Rep.
Tulsi Gabbard on Meeting with President-Elect Donald Trump
21
November, 2016
U.S.
Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard (HI-02) today released the following
statement on her meeting with President-elect Donald Trump regarding
Syria:
“President-elect
Trump asked me to meet with him about our current policies regarding
Syria, our fight against terrorist groups like al-Qaeda and ISIS, as
well as other foreign policy challenges we face. I felt it important
to take the opportunity to meet with the President-elect now before
the drumbeats of war that neocons have been beating drag us into an
escalation of the war to overthrow the Syrian government—a war
which has already cost hundreds of thousands of lives and forced
millions of refugees to flee their homes in search of safety for
themselves and their families.
“While
the rules of political expediency would say I should have refused to
meet with President-elect Trump, I never have and never will play
politics with American and Syrian lives.
“Serving
the people of Hawaiʻi and our nation is an honor and responsibility
that I do not take lightly. Representing the aloha spirit and
diversity of the people of Hawaiʻi, I will continue to seek common
ground to deliver results that best serve all Americans, as I have
tried to do during my time in Congress.
“Where
I disagree with President-elect Trump on issues, I will not hesitate
to express that disagreement. However, I believe we can disagree,
even strongly, but still come together on issues that matter to the
American people and affect their daily lives. We cannot allow
continued divisiveness to destroy our country.
“President-elect
Trump and I had a frank and positive conversation in which we
discussed a variety of foreign policy issues in depth. I shared with
him my grave concerns that escalating the war in Syria by
implementing a so-called no fly/safe zone would be disastrous for the
Syrian people, our country, and the world. It would lead to more
death and suffering, exacerbate the refugee crisis, strengthen ISIS
and al-Qaeda, and bring us into a direct conflict with Russia which
could result in a nuclear war. We discussed my bill to end our
country’s illegal war to overthrow the Syrian government, and the
need to focus our precious resources on rebuilding our own country,
and on defeating al-Qaeda, ISIS, and other terrorist groups who pose
a threat to the American people.
“For
years, the issue of ending interventionist, regime change warfare has
been one of my top priorities. This was the major reason I ran for
Congress—I saw firsthand the cost of war, and the lives lost due to
the interventionist warmongering policies our country has pursued for
far too long.
“Let
me be clear, I will never allow partisanship to undermine our
national security when the lives of countless people lay in the
balance.”
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