The senior senator from South Carolina warned during a television appearance yesterday that we’re closer than ever to war with North Korea following Pyongyang’s latest ICBM test.
That missile, believed to be an upgraded version of North Korea’s Hwasong-14, flew higher than any previous missile Pyongyang has tested, leaving some experts to believe all of the United States is now in range.
That means, according to Sen. Lindsey Graham, that the North is pushing the Trump administration closer to a decision to use force in order to deal with the threat.
“If we have to go to war to stop this, we will,” Graham said. “If there’s a war with North Korea it will be because North Korea brought it on itself, and we’re headed to a war if things don’t change.
“I don’t want a war. He doesn’t want a war,” Graham said, referring to President Trump. “But we’re not going to let this crazy man in North Korea have the capability to hit the homeland.”
Graham added that the president is ready to act if forced to do so by North Korea.
“He is ready, if necessary, to destroy this regime to protect America, and I hope the regime understands that if President Trump has to pick between destroying the North Korean regime and the American homeland, he’s going to destroy the regime. I hope China understands that also,” Graham said.
“Even if it means thousands, hundreds of thousands of people over there get hurt to protect America. Now that’s the choice that the president has to make. I stand with him. The best outcome is not to have a war. I don’t want a war, he doesn’t want a war, but we’re not going to let this crazy man in North Korea have the capability to hit the homeland. We’re not going to live this way,” Graham added. “To our friends in China, we’re not going to live this way. You need to help us, and if you don’t help us, we’ll take care of it. And us taking care of it means that the war is in your backyard, not ours.” [source]
Information in this article helps satisfy Priority Intelligence Requirement 2: What is the current situation report and risk of war in each of the four flashpoints?
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