Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) defended President Donald Trump&#8217;s recent decision to suspend security clearances at several law firms that were involved in law fare against him over the last several years.
Graham made the remarks during a Sunday interview on CBS News&#8217; &#8220;Face The Nation&#8221; with Margaret Brennan when asked if he supported Trump&#8217;s actions.
&#8220;Yes, I think all of these things — I think [special counsel] Jack Smith was politically motivated,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I think the Russian hoax — a lot of people should have gone to jail, and they didn&#8217;t. I think the idea that President Trump was an agent of Russia was manufactured.&#8221;
He said that the president was well within his legal right to strip the security clearances and that it was good for the legal system that Trump was doing this.
&#8220;Well, private business aided government power in a fashion to destroy Donald Trump&#8217;s life,&#8221; he said. &#8220;You know, on our side, nobody in your world gets it, but our people believe that the Justice Department was used as a weapon to destroy Trump&#8217;s campaign and his business interests and to ruin his family.&#8221;
&#8220;That they made up bogus charges and they proceeded in a fashion that was designed to destroy him politically and personally. I believe that,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;And if these people involved pay a price, they got nobody but themselves to blame. That&#8217;s what I believe.&#8221;
Graham said that the law firms were pushing legal theories that were &#8220;designed for political outcomes more than legal outcomes.&#8221;
&#8220;And Jack Smith using the power of government, incorporating these law firms, in my view, were trying to disrupt and take down the Republican nominee for president,&#8221; he added. &#8220;That this was an orchestrated effort and Biden only regretted they didn&#8217;t do it sooner. So, it was politically motivated. And everybody with their fingerprints on it, I hope they pay a price.&#8221;
WATCH:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Sen. Lindsey Graham rebukes lawyers who defended Trump foes: &quot;I hope they pay a price&quot;" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/WDcLt5G9HzY?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Miitary Aid to Israel

Lindsey Graham Defends Trump Stripping Security Clearances Of Law Firms Behind Attacks On Him

Donald Trump

Face The Nation

Lindsey Graham

Media

Politics

Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) said over the weekend that changing the power dynamic in Ukraine is critical to forcing Russian President Vladimir Putin to the table and bringing the war to an end.
Crenshaw made the remarks during a Sunday interview on CBS News&#8217; &#8220;Face the Nation&#8221; with host Margaret Brennan when asked about what continued role the United States would have in backing Ukraine.
He said that the Trump administration wants lasting peace in Ukraine, which means that security assurances must be put in place to prevent future wars from erupting.
&#8220;I think the Europeans have to play a huge role in that,&#8221; he said. &#8220;One of the things that gets talked about a lot is European forces actually acting as a peacekeeping force.&#8221;
&#8220;The Ukrainians clearly have a seat at the table and then the United States will be the intermediary as we try to establish a peace deal,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;But the Europeans need to demand a seat at the table by being uncomfortably aggressive, which is something they haven&#8217;t done. You should be threatening things to Putin that actually make you uncomfortable because that&#8217;s the only language Putin speaks is power.&#8221;
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He said that America&#8217;s message to Europe was that if they wanted to win, they needed to bolster their defense spending and not rely so heavily on the United States.
&#8220;You need to be talking about where you&#8217;re going to be putting actual troops on the ground,&#8221; he added. &#8220;Stop following our lead and actually take the lead. Let us be actually holding you back. That would be an ideal situation and vastly change the power dynamic when dealing with Putin.&#8221;
WATCH:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Extended interview: Crenshaw says Europe should be &quot;uncomfortably aggressive&quot; to counter Russia" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/N0VgEZ7UD9U?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Dan Crenshaw

Dan Crenshaw: Europe Needs To Be ‘Uncomfortably Aggressive’ Toward Russia To End War

CBS News

Congress

Margaret Brennan

Russia

Ukraine

Ukraine-Russia War

Vladimir Putin

CBS News host Margaret Brennan faced intense backlash on Sunday after she claimed during an interview with Secretary of State Marco Rubio that &#8220;free speech was weaponized&#8221; to cause the Holocaust.
Brennan made the comment during an interview on &#8220;Face the Nation&#8221; while talking about Vice President JD Vance&#8217;s speech to European leaders last week in which he called them out for abandoning values like free speech.
“He was standing in a country where free speech was weaponized to conduct a genocide,” Brennan said while talking about Vance&#8217;s speech in Munich, Germany.
Brennan was met with instant pushback online over her claim, including from top elected leaders.
Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO) posted on X: &#8220;Free speech caused the Holocaust is an insanely stupid take.&#8221;
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&#8220;I&#8217;m glad Margaret Brennan blamed free speech for the rise of the Nazis,&#8221; said columnist John Podhoretz. &#8220;It&#8217;s always a virtue when a person in a position of authority and influence who was elevated beyond her station reveals her ineptitude and folly&#8211;so that the world can see her clearly henceforth.&#8221;
&#8220;This bonkers,&#8221; said Red State writer Bonchie. &#8220;Like pull her off the air bonkers.&#8221;
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
This is the first time I’ve heard the theory that the Holocaust wasn’t conducted with gas chambers but with free speech zones. <a href="https://t.co/mpWm6UH2F4">pic.twitter.com/mpWm6UH2F4</a>
— Michael Brendan Dougherty (@michaelbd) <a href="https://twitter.com/michaelbd/status/1891206009508536367?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 16, 2025</a></blockquote>
Radio host Erick Erickson posted on X: &#8220;Can we just talk about how a prominent American news anchor actually believes Nazi Germany had free speech and that supposed free speech is to blame for the Holocaust? That&#8217;s both deeply arrogant and deeply ignorant.&#8221;
Columnist Karol Markowicz posted on X: &#8220;It’s wild that this is how far the left has fallen. Free speech caused the Holocaust, you guys.&#8221;
&#8220;This is absolute lunacy from Margaret Brennan,&#8221; wrote journalist Andrew Kerr.
&#8220;I legitimately don&#8217;t know how ignorant you have to be to claim the holocaust happened as a result of free speech,&#8221; said Meghan McCain. &#8220;This woman doesn&#8217;t deserve to host this show and Republicans should stop rewarding this s*** by going on it.&#8221;

Margaret Brennan Slammed Over Claim That ‘Free Speech Was Weaponized’ To Cause The Holocaust

Free Speech

Holocaust

Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-TN) said that the Trump administration&#8217;s buyout of tens of thousands of federal workers was only the first step in its mission to make the government more efficient and to reduce wasteful spending.
Hagerty made the remarks during a Sunday interview on CBS News&#8217; &#8220;Face The Nation&#8221; when asked about the cuts and buyouts.
&#8220;I think what President Trump is trying to do is be humane in the process of allowing them to make plans to find other employment, but I certainly think the government is far too big, far too bloated, and we&#8217;re on a path now to start to see it shrink,&#8221; he said. &#8220;This is the first step only, but we&#8217;re moving in the right direction.&#8221;
He sad that each department and agency would conduct reviews to see where money was being wasted and ways things could be made more efficient.
&#8220;This is not unusual, to take a hard look at these programs and also to look for opportunities to cut bloat and waste,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Look, we&#8217;re $36 trillion in debt. Clearly, the American — the American public need to see more accountability, more visibility, more performance for their taxpayer dollars.&#8221;
Hagerty also addressed the administration&#8217;s plans to target the CFPB, which he argued has been &#8220;out of control for some time&#8221; and is effectively &#8220;unconstitutional.&#8221;
&#8220;It has no oversight,&#8221; he said. &#8220;It&#8217;s been basically a reckless agency that&#8217;s been allowed to go way beyond any mandate that I think was originally intended. So it&#8217;s time to rein it in, and I&#8217;m applauding anything that we can do to bring more stability, more control to the federal government and take agencies like this back, you know, back into some sort of sense of accountability and oversight.&#8221;
He also ripped USAID, saying that the organization was also out of control and had &#8220;refused&#8221; to be accountable for a long time.
&#8220;I&#8217;ve, you know, asked them to be very clear about, for example, their role in funding Hamas in Gaza. They would not comply,&#8221; he said. &#8220;They will not tell us what they do. Now that we start to find out some of the programs that AID has been funding, if you think about it, sex change operations in Guatemala, LGBTQ programs in Serbia this is ridiculous. This is so beyond the pale.&#8221;
WATCH:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="en. Bill Hagerty says he believes there is a &quot;tremendous appetite&quot; to dismantle USAID" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/yVPvswIu1t0?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Congressional Lawmakers React To The Expiration Of The Title 42 Border Policy

Senator Hagerty: Trump Giving Government Workers Buyouts To Be ‘Humane’

Bill Hagerty

CBS News National/Legal correspondent Jan Crawford said the quiet part out loud — during a panel discussion on the network&#8217;s Sunday morning talk show &#8220;Face the Nation&#8221; — when she conceded that the most &#8220;under-reported&#8221; story of 2024 was President Joe Biden&#8217;s &#8220;obvious cognitive decline.&#8221;
Guest host and chief Washington correspondent Major Garrett raised the topic during Sunday morning&#8217;s broadcast, looking first to Crawford for her take on which story went unreported or under-reported in 2024 — and her reaction was immediate.
Outkick founder Clay Travis shared video of the exchange along with the following caption: &#8220;CBS News journalist roundtable says Joe Biden’s clear mental and physical decline was the most underreported story of 2024. But true self reflection would demands question — why was that? The answer is because most legacy media are Democrat propagandists.&#8221;
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
CBS News journalist roundtable says Joe Biden’s clear mental and physical decline was the most underreported story of 2024. But true self reflection would demands question — why was that? The answer is because most legacy media are Democrat propagandists. <a href="https://t.co/mVQzfpUxUv">pic.twitter.com/mVQzfpUxUv</a>
&mdash; Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClayTravis/status/1873730094528938346?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 30, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;Under-covered and under-reported, that would be, to me, Joe Biden’s obvious cognitive decline that became undeniable in the televised debate,&#8221; Crawford began.
&#8220;At the presidential debate with Donald Trump?&#8221; Major Garrett pressed her to continue.
&#8220;Unquestioned,&#8221; Crawford confirmed. &#8220;And it’s starting to emerge now that his advisers kind of managed his limitations, which has been reported in &#8216;The Wall Street Journal,&#8217; for four years. And yet he insisted that he could still run for president.&#8221;
&#8220;We should have much more forcefully questioned whether he was fit for office for another four years, which could have led to a primary for the Democrats. It could have changed the scope of the entire election,&#8221; Crawford added, noting that legacy media&#8217;s complete lack of curiosity regarding Biden&#8217;s obvious decline may have contributed to the Democrats&#8217; loss in 2024.
&#8220;Yet still, incredibly, we read in &#8216;The Washington Post&#8217; that his advisers are saying that he regrets that he dropped out of the race &#8230; that he thinks he could have beaten Trump. And I think that is either delusional or they’re gaslighting the American people,&#8221; Crawford concluded.
Robert Costa pointed out then that Biden&#8217;s position — and the position taken by some family members and aides — has always been that he is fine and not at all impaired.
&#8220;President Biden has said repeatedly he was sick during the debate June 27th in Atlanta,&#8221; Costa noted. &#8220;And he&#8217;s always been fine and he leaves [office] fine. That is his position, the position of many of his top aides as well, even though there is that reporting.&#8221;

President Biden Speaks To The Department Of Labor

CBS Correspondent Suddenly Wants To Discuss How Media Helped Cover Up Biden’s Cognitive Decline

CBS Correspondent Suddenly Wants To Discuss How Media Helped Cover Up Biden's Cognitive Decline

Joe Biden

Rep. French Hill (R-AR) said during an interview over the weekend that Republicans were united to implement President-elect Donald Trump&#8217;s agenda once he takes over in January.
Hill made the remarks during a Sunday CBS News interview with Margaret Brennan on &#8220;Face The Nation&#8221; when asked how united Republicans would be given the chaos that unfolded last week in trying to pass a stopgap spending bill.
&#8220;I think it&#8217;s very, very important that Speaker Johnson and incoming Majority Leader Thune have a steady plan together to work with the incoming Trump administration to prioritize the president&#8217;s priorities, our priorities in the House and Senate, make sure we&#8217;re on the same page because with narrow majorities we&#8217;ve got to work together,&#8221; he said. &#8220;And that&#8217;s critical. And I think this last week demonstrated that.&#8221;
He said that House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) are considering using the budget reconciliation process to ram Trump&#8217;s agenda through.
&#8220;That&#8217;s still being discussed as to exactly what that procedure will be,&#8221; he said. &#8220;But I believe actually that Republicans on both sides of The Hill are united that we want to unleash American energy for future production and an all of the above energy strategy.&#8221;
&#8220;We want to secure the border,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;We want to fight inflation through supply side regulatory reforms. We want to roll back those regulations that are constraining the markets and constraining private business having access to capital.&#8221;
He said that Republicans were all on the same page and they also wanted to &#8220;rein in unsustainable $2 trillion deficits.&#8221;
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
In the wake of the House&#8217;s funding fight and the 34 Republicans that voted against the government spending bill, GOP <a href="https://twitter.com/RepFrenchHill?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RepFrenchHill</a> says &#8220;I think we can,&#8221; when asked whether Republicans in the next Congress will be able to unify to pass their agenda. Hill says the GOP is &#8220;united&#8221;… <a href="https://t.co/lrQQ8VDr0E">pic.twitter.com/lrQQ8VDr0E</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/1870884593164747230?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 22, 2024</a></blockquote>

House Members Attend GOP Retreat At Greenbrier Resort

French Hill: Republicans Are United To Implement The Trump Agenda

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said during an interview over the weekend that it was deeply disturbing how leftists have praised the man who was charged with murdering a health insurance CEO on the streets of New York City earlier this month.
Mayorkas made the remarks during a Sunday interview on CBS News&#8217; &#8220;Face The Nation&#8221; with Margaret Brennan.
&#8220;Manhattan prosecutors called it a killing that was intended to evoke terror. Would you consider him a terrorist?&#8221; Brennan asked. &#8220;Is this domestic violent extremism?&#8221;
Mayorkas responded: &#8220;The rhetoric on social media following that – that murder is extraordinarily alarming. It speaks of what is really bubbling here in this country. And, unfortunately, we see that manifested in violence, the domestic violent extremism that exists. The threat of it in the United States is one of the great threat streams that we must counter.&#8221;
He said that a lot of hateful rhetoric on social media was becoming an increasing area of concern for law enforcement officials.
&#8220;And the language of violence accompanying or being a part of those narratives is something that we&#8217;re very concerned about that. That is a heightened threat environment,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I still am alarmed, though, by the heroism that is being attributed to an alleged murderer of a father of two children on the streets in New York City.&#8221;
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Homeland Security <a href="https://twitter.com/SecMayorkas?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SecMayorkas</a> tells <a href="https://twitter.com/margbrennan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@margbrennan</a> the killing of United Healthcare’s CEO in New York is a manifestation of “domestic violent extremism” in the U.S.
He adds he’s “alarmed” by “the heroism” being attributed on social media “to an alleged murderer of a father of… <a href="https://t.co/hWqPcBw16b">pic.twitter.com/hWqPcBw16b</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/1870545809412079637?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 21, 2024</a></blockquote>

Homeland Security Secretary Mayorkas Holds Media Availability In Eagle Pass, Texas

Mayorkas: Leftists Praising Man Who Murder Health Insurance CEO ‘Extraordinarily Alarming’

Alejandro Mayorkas

Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) said during an interview over the weekend that Elon Musk has become like a prime minister for the incoming Republican government.
Gonzales made the remarks during a Sunday interview on CBS News&#8217; &#8220;Face The Nation&#8221; with Margaret Brennan while talking about the impact that Musk and President-elect Donald Trump had on passing a short term spending bill last week to keep the government open.
&#8220;Elon Musk is tweeting against bipartisan deals negotiated and led by the speaker of the House,&#8221; Brennan said. &#8220;What role exactly is he playing here?&#8221;
Gonzales responded: &#8220;It&#8217;s kind of interesting. We have a president. We have a vice president. We have a speaker. And it feels as if Elon Musk is our prime minister.&#8221;
&#8220;He has a voice,&#8221; he said. &#8220;And I think a lot of – large part of that voice is a reflection of the voice of the people. Once again, these – a 1,500-page bill, how does that pass the smell test? It&#8217;s absolutely wrong. It&#8217;s what&#8217;s wrong with this place. So we have to get back to regular order.&#8221;
&#8220;The other part of it too is, while House Republicans were fighting over this spending bill, guess what Senate Democrats were doing?&#8221; he continued. &#8220;They were ensuring that President Biden got his 235th liberal judge over the finish line. That&#8217;s why it&#8217;s so important that House Republicans stay united, stay laser-focused on delivering on a President Trump agenda next year.&#8221;
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
“It feels as if Elon Musk is our prime minister,” Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-TX) says about the billionaire’s influence on the vote for a bill to avert a government shutdown
Gonzales adds that he supports House Speaker Mike Johnson ahead of the next vote for the speakership, noting… <a href="https://t.co/cIfR9IZyJp">pic.twitter.com/cIfR9IZyJp</a>
— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/1870879728506134872?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 22, 2024</a></blockquote>

Rep. Tony Gonzales

GOP Congressman: Elon Musk Is Like ‘Our Prime Minister’

Elon Musk

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) said over the weekend that he is most concerned about foreign actors interfering in U.S. elections by introducing deep fakes that go viral on social media and end up tilting who people vote for before the videos can be debunked.
Rubio, the vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, made the remarks during a Sunday CBS News interview on &#8220;Face The Nation&#8221; with Margaret Brennan.
He said that the scenario that he worries about is in the 48 hours before an election where a foreign action could release &#8220;fake audio or fake video generated using A.I.&#8221; that could influence the results of the election.
&#8220;In very close races, it could tip the scales,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I do think all the way around, here&#8217;s the bottom line. If you see something out there, a video that just seems way too scandalous, I would pause for a second and make sure that it can be verified. That&#8217;s my advice to everybody is, don&#8217;t just believe something you see for the first time. It may have been something that happened five years ago, and they&#8217;re making it look like it happened yesterday.&#8221;
&#8220;It may be something that – that has been made up using an A.I. mechanism to do so,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;And so that would be my advice to people as well. Again, I&#8217;m not saying 48 hours before the election is irrelevant in America. I am saying it&#8217;s probably less impactful than it is in some of these other countries, who don&#8217;t have mail voting, early voting, where so many of the votes are already in by then.&#8221;
He then warned that the foreign operations targeting American elections could have their greatest impact at the congressional-level.
&#8220;I think some of these lower ballot races are the ones that are particularly more susceptible, because, if you&#8217;re running for Congress or Senate somewhere, let&#8217;s say a congressional seat, and someone dumps something like this on you, it&#8217;s much harder to get the truth out there in time for it to be cleared up,&#8221; he said. &#8220;There just isn&#8217;t going to be as much interest, and there isn&#8217;t going to be as much people covering it.&#8221;
WATCH:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Marco Rubio says &quot;the dogs and cats thing&quot; has gotten more attention than immigration impacts" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/VBeDccDSe3M?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Marco Rubio

Rubio Reveals Most ‘Concerning’ Scenario He Envisions Foreign Actors Taking To Interfere In Election

2024 Election

Election

Governor Gretchen Whitmer said during an interview over the weekend that despite what polling may show right now, this fall&#8217;s upcoming presidential election will be &#8220;close&#8221; in the state.
Whitmer made the remarks during a Sunday interview with Margaret Brennan on CBS News&#8217; &#8220;Face The Nation&#8221; when pressed about President Joe Biden&#8217;s weakness in polling numbers.
&#8220;I think everyone should always focus on Michigan,&#8221; she said. &#8220;It&#8217;s always going to be close in this state. Even though we did something that hadn&#8217;t been done in 40 years by flipping the House and the Senate and all Democratic controlled at the moment. It&#8217;s- the work is never done. You cannot make any assumptions about what the next election is going to bring, based on the last one in a state like this. You got to show up. You got to do the work and show people that you really care about them.&#8221;
Whitmer said that her state was a purple state and that it was &#8220;absolutely&#8221; up for grabs in 2024.
Brennan then pressed Whitmer about polling that showed that voters overwhelmingly believe that former President Donald Trump would be better for the U.S. economy than Biden.
Whitmer said that she believes that there are several indicators that the U.S. economy is moving the right direction but acknowledged that the cost of living was still way too high and that not enough young people are able to buy homes.
Whitmer criticized Biden for the crisis on the U.S. southern border, saying that it&#8217;s &#8220;an emergency and it&#8217;s not been working for a long, long time.&#8221;
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer: Do not assume &quot;about what the next election is going to bring&quot;" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/3_MLR1kElo8?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>

NFC Divisional Playoffs – Tampa Bay Buccaneers v Detroit Lions

Gretchen Whitmer: Presidential Race Is ‘Going To Be Close’ In Michigan

Gretchen Whitmer

Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie said over the weekend that an unprecedented factor in the 2024 Republican presidential primaries means that it is going to be a lot harder to make accurate predictions about what is going to happen when it comes time to vote.
Christie made the remarks during a Sunday interview on CBS News&#8217; &#8220;Face The Nation&#8221; with Margaret Brennan when asked if he will drop if he does not make the debate stage this week.
&#8220;I don&#8217;t think they&#8217;ve told anybody yet who all of us are going to be on the stage, but I&#8217;m confident, Margaret, that I will be there and that we have all the qualifications necessary to get there,&#8221; he said.
&#8220;Look, this field has already consolidated more than any non-incumbent field in this century,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Back this time eight years ago, we had 13 candidates still in the race. At this time back, you know, in 2011, we had eight candidates in the race. And at this time back in 2007, we had nine candidates in the race.&#8221;
&#8220;And so this field has consolidated significantly,&#8221; he said. &#8220;And I suspect it will consolidate more after folks vote in Iowa and New Hampshire.&#8221;
When Brennan confronted him about how he thinks things are going to go given the fact that former President Donald Trump is currently leading, Christie mentioned that the criminal indictments Trump is facing add a lot of uncertainty to how things could shake out.
&#8220;The other thing that makes it different is he&#8217;s got 91 counts of indictment against him,&#8221; he said. &#8220;The day before Super Tuesday, he&#8217;s going to start a criminal trial, where his former chief of staff and one of the founders of the Freedom Caucus is going to testify that he committed crimes on his watch and was directed to commit crimes by Donald Trump.&#8221;
&#8220;There&#8217;s a lot of things different about this,&#8221; he added. &#8220;And that&#8217;s why anybody tried to predict this is just shooting in the dark.&#8221;
&#8220;I don&#8217;t think you know exactly what&#8217;s going to happen at all until people vote,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Look, if we listened to all the polling, Margaret, Hillary Clinton would be in her second term. So I don&#8217;t believe that polling is nearly as reliable as it used to be. And I don&#8217;t believe that people tell the truth to pollsters. And so, at the end of the day, everybody who&#8217;s trying to make these decisions now are just wrong. Let&#8217;s remember something. In this – in the Republican primary in &#8217;07, do you know who was winning at this time in &#8217;07? Mitt Romney.&#8221;
&#8220;You know who was winning at this time in &#8217;11? Newt Gingrich. And winning this time in &#8217;15 was Ben Carson. I don&#8217;t remember any of those presidencies,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;So, you know, my view, we can&#8217;t worry about that kind of stuff. What we need to worry about is the direction this country is going in. And most people don&#8217;t agree with it. And if you don&#8217;t agree with the direction of the country, why would you vote for either Trump or Biden, who have put us in this direction?&#8221;
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
&quot;Anybody trying to predict this is just shooting in the dark,&quot; presidential candidate <a href="https://twitter.com/GovChristie?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@GovChristie</a> says about the Republican primary. He says about polling showing Donald Trump leading the field: &quot;I don&#39;t think you know exactly what&#39;s going to happen at all until people vote.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/UfxGrafXAi">pic.twitter.com/UfxGrafXAi</a>
&mdash; Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/1731349753512808647?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 3, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Chris Christie Launches 2024 Presidential Bid

Christie: Due To Unprecedented Factor In Primary, Predictions At This Point ‘Just Shooting In The Dark’

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National Security Council Coordinator For Strategic Communications John Kirby said on Sunday that despite criticism Israel has taken over how it has conducted its war against Hamas, the country does significantly more than most countries to prevent the loss of civilian life.
Kirby made the remarks during a Sunday interview on CBS News&#8217; &#8220;Face The Nation&#8221; with Margaret Brennan, when asked if the U.S. believes Israel was doing enough to prevent civilian casualties as the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry publishes unverified claims about the number of civilians killed.
Kirby said that in an ideal world the only acceptable number of human casualties that should ever occur is zero before acknowledging that some civilians have been killed as Israel hunts down the Hamas terrorists responsible for murdering 1,200 Israelis, wounding 5,300+, and kidnapping more than 240.
&#8220;In the last 24 hours, they have been putting a map online of places where people in Gaza need to avoid and need to go,&#8221; Kirby said. &#8220;They have also been doing it with paper and leaflets and that kind of thing.&#8221;
&#8220;My point is, Margaret, that it&#8217;s very rare for a modern military to take those kinds of steps, basically telegraphing their punches, before they actually conduct operations,&#8221; Kirby added.
Kirby said that while the U.S. was encouraging Israel to be as careful and precise as possible in their strikes against terrorist targets inside Gaza, it was important to remember what Israel is up against.
&#8220;Hamas deliberately shelters themselves inside residential buildings, hospitals and schools basically on purpose, putting civilians in the line of fire. And what Israel&#8217;s trying to do is get them out of the line of fire,&#8221; he said. &#8220;So, it&#8217;s an added burden that Israel has, as a modern military. And we recognize that. But it&#8217;s also a very difficult burden and obstacle for them to overcome.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
&quot;The right number of civilian casualties&quot; in Gaza &quot;is zero,&quot; says John Kirby, spokesman for the National Security Council. He tells <a href="https://twitter.com/margbrennan?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@margbrennan</a> that the U.S. is working with Israel &quot;to get them to be as careful and as precise and as deliberate in their targeting as possible.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/kafF2lOMPR">pic.twitter.com/kafF2lOMPR</a>
&mdash; Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) <a href="https://twitter.com/FaceTheNation/status/1731353837758238963?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 3, 2023</a></blockquote>
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White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre National Security Council spokesman John Kirby

John Kirby: ‘It’s Very Rare For A Modern Military’ To Go As Far As Israel Does To Prevent Civilian Casualties

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