White House adviser Sebastian Gorka said Wednesday that President Donald Trump’s threatening of North Korea with “fire and fury” and nuclear weapons over its alleged advancement of nuclear capabilities distinguished the United States as a “hyperpower.”
Responding to bipartisan criticism of Trump’s bombastic rhetoric, Gorka said: “These are the moments when we have to come together as the nation and support the executive.”
In an appearance on “Fox & Friends” — which Trump is known to watch nearly daily — co-host Steve Doocy asked Gorka what Trump meant with a new round of threats on Twitter earlier that morning.
My first order as President was to renovate and modernize our nuclear arsenal. It is now far stronger and more powerful than ever before….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 9, 2017
…Hopefully we will never have to use this power, but there will never be a time that we are not the most powerful nation in the world!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 9, 2017
“He’s saying don’t test America, and don’t test Donald J. Trump,” Gorka responded. “We are not just a superpower. We were a superpower. We are now a hyperpower. Nobody in the world, especially not North Korea, comes close to challenging our military capabilities. Whether they’re conventional, whether they’re nuclear or whether they’re special forces. So the message is very clear: Don’t test this White House, Pyongyang.”
Gorka later said, referring to his own bombastic rhetoric: “Believe it or not, I got great talking points for this interview.”
He also characterized North Korea’s actions as an attempt to “blackmail the West” into concessions and called on the country to stop its missile testing and militaristic rhetoric.
“This is extortion, nothing less,” he said, referring to North Korea.
“Are you saying they have built an atomic bomb to shake us down for stuff?” Doocy asked bluntly.
“It’s absolutely clear,” Gorka said. “It’s absolutely clear.”
And, responding to critics of Trump’s rhetoric including Democratic leadership and Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), who chairs the Senate Armed Forces Committee, Gorka was blunt: You’re either with Trump, or you’re not a patriot.
“These are the moments when we have to come together as the nation and support the executive,” he said. “Whether you voted for him or not, whether they’re a Democrat, whether they’re a Republican, these are the trying times. During the Cuban missile crisis, we stood behind JFK. This is analogous to the Cuban missile crisis.”
Gorka added: “Anybody, whether they’re a member of a Congress, whether they’re a journalist: If you think your party politics, your ideology trumps the national security of America, that is an indictment of you.”
This post has been updated.
Yeah, just like the guys on trial at Nuremberg did…
Gorka vying for the Dr Strangelove seat in the White House?
Hungarian Nazi says what?
Sorry, Gorka, “Sieg Heil!” is not part of my lexicon, not in any way!
The Arrow-Heart, those were the good ol’ days.