Four out of six of Iowa’s Congressional Delegation responded to President Donald Trump’s summit and press conference with Russian President Vladmir Putin.
“I have the utmost faith in the U.S. intelligence community and their assessment that Russia interfered in the 2016 election. Russia has never been a friend to the U.S., and they continue to pose a threat to America and our allies,” U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) said in a released statement.
“We need to be cautious in how we approach our dealings with Russia. I hope that President Trump, today, delivered a strong message behind closed doors that Russia will continue to be punished for their illegal annexation of Ukraine in 2014, their abhorrent support for the murderous Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria and their aggressive actions in U.S. domestic policy. I am also hopeful President Trump discussed Russia’s role in the Balkans, as Iowa’s sister state, Kosovo, continues to be threatened by Russia’s hybrid warfare tactics in Serbia,” she added.
U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) told Ed Tibbits of the Quad City Times that the summit represented a missed opportunity.
“President Trump missed an opportunity to publicly press President Putin on whether he would agree to extradite the defendants to the United States to answer the allegations in court,” Grassley said.
Congressman Dave Loebsack (D-Iowa) who represents Iowa’s 2nd Congressional District criticized Trump’s statements about the Russian interference into the 2016 Presidential election.
“President Trump is flat out wrong to blame the United States and take the word of a foreign adversary over the findings of his own intelligence experts and the House Intelligence Committee. Iowans understand that Putin is a tyrant and it is now more critical than ever that both parties in Congress work together to protect our election systems, democratic process and national security interests both at home and abroad,” he said in a released statement.
Congressman David Young (R-Iowa) who represents Iowa’s 3rd Congressional District addressed the summit in a series of tweets on Monday afternoon.
There is no doubt Russia interfered in our election, this has been confirmed by our intelligence community and Congressional committees. While we don’t know what was said in the closed door meeting, in the public setting the President missed an important opportunity… (1/3)
— David Young (@RepDavidYoung) July 16, 2018
…to pronounce serious displeasure and consequences of this meddling and interference. Russia is not an ally. Russia is our adversary. Iowans and Americans take their elections and value their vote in a dutiful and personal way and… (2/3)
— David Young (@RepDavidYoung) July 16, 2018
…the President should have acknowledged this publicly by at least chastising Putin and warning him against acting against the interests and values of the United States and her republic her republic in this way. (3/3)
— David Young (@RepDavidYoung) July 16, 2018