Rep. Chris Stewart (UT-2) on Issues Arising From Latin America

FRANK GAFFNEY: Welcome to Secure Freedom Radio, this is Frank Gaffney, your host and guide for what I think of as an intelligence briefing on the war for the free world. A man who has conducted himself in a most exemplary fashion in several different capacities in that war is our first guest, a repeat appearance, I am very pleased to say, it is Congressman Chris Stewart, who represents the people of the second district of Utah. His record of accomplishment is hard to summarize in the short time we have available; let me simply say, he is a command Air Force pilot, setting world records, the author of seventeen books, including New York Times bestsellers. He is, in addition, as I’ve indicated, a member of the House of Representatives and serves on its Appropriations Committee, as well as its Intelligence Committee, and Congressman, it is always a delight to have you with us, thanks for taking a few minutes to catch up, it’s good to talk with you.

Rep. CHRIS STEWART: It’s always good to be with you, Sir, you’re overly gracious in your introductions, but thank you.

FRANK GAFFNEY: Well, I truly mean it, it doesn’t do justice to your record, but I’m glad to have a chance to talk with you a bit about several things, including something you been on from very early on, and that is the Zika virus. I’d like to get your sense of what’s afoot with this thing, and how serious a public health problem you believe it represents.

Rep. CHRIS STEWART: You know, I don’t think we know yet, which is why I think we need to lean into this thing rather than just kind of sit back and wait, you know, if we [in audible] your listeners some time ago and none of us had heard of Zika. But it’s spreading quickly, I was in a briefing yesterday that showed the spread of this and it was really quite remarkable. So I think that again, this is something that the Congress and the government need to lean into instead of just passively wait and hope that it’s okay.

FRANK GAFFNEY: I’m reminded by this incident which, well not incident, but this potentially very dangerous disease emanating from Latin America, of the fact that we are very connected to the rest of this hemisphere and I just wonder whether you would buy my crude analogy, perhaps, that we had better be paying attention to other very toxic things emanating from Latin America, notably, drugs in large quantities. As a former military officer, you know, I’m sure, very well the degree to which we’ve really degraded our ability to monitor let alone intercept such drug trafficking and there’s also talk about letting a lot of folks who had been engaged in that business out of jail. What are you thoughts on that, Congressman Chris Stewart?

Rep. CHRIS STEWART: Oh my Heavens, Frank, there’s so much I want to say, but if I could go back to Zika for just a second and then I’ll comment on what you asked there. Just two days ago we’d only had we thought had three or four cases that were travelers, [inaudible] is international travel and how easy that is. Three or four cases of states in the US that have been known cases from international travel and in our briefing yesterday, they said that no, that stat is 24 hours old, it’s now 17 states. So I think that gives you a sense of how quickly this thing is beginning to, you know, have its presence here in the U.S. Now, your point about drugs, gosh, we spend a surprising amount of time on that issue in the Intelligence Committee, particularly looking at Latin America and Mexico. And two things, one is the pervasive of it and then subsequent corruption. Oh my heavens, so many of the national police, so many of the national leaders in this states, or these nations, have become entirely corrupted, but when you have that much money floating around, it’s easy to appreciate how that might happen.

FRANK GAFFNEY: It’s, I gather, a proposition that’s put to folks, you can have the silver or the lead, and that does tend to get people opting for the corruption. Speaking of intelligence, and speaking of the challenge that we’re facing with the drug trafficking problem, I want to visit with you again if I may Congressman, about Guantanamo Bay. There is further indication out of the Obama administration that they are, come what may, notwithstanding the law, going to empty that place. My guess is, that in short order, they will turn it over to the Cubans, as well, who in turn may turn it over to hostile powers including perhaps Russia, China, maybe even Iran. Could you just give us your current reading on what’s happening on that front and how serious a national security problem that would represent?

Rep. CHRIS STEWART: Well, it represents a significant national security problem, and as Marco Rubio and so many other presidential candidates have said, we should be filling Guantanamo, not emptying it, because we have, you know, serious threats that that’s an appropriate place for them. But this President has made it clear that when he determines he’s going to take a course of action, he doesn’t care what Congress thinks, he frankly doesn’t care what the law is many times. He just goes about doing it and dares us to try to stop him, and I’m afraid that’s what he’s doing exactly on Guantanamo. The law on this is very clear, it’s not ambiguous, and the President doesn’t have the authority to transfer these prisoners without Congressional approval, yet he’s bent on doing that. There are a significant amount that are far too dangerous to ever release, we’ll see what he does with them, but what the law says he can do with them is very clear. And you know, if I could just, the only recourse we have with him many times is through the courts, and what is a dangerous precedent, but good news, different subject, but the precedent is worth nothing. And that is the courts have found in our position many times. The freezing of the immigration policy in the last few days, the ruling of the Supreme Court on his clean air proposals regarding climate change, they found in our favor in that. So, although I hate to use that as a last resource, the good news is that even the even courts are recognizing that this president is going too far.

FRANK GAFFNEY: Yeah, well I hope a way can be found to inject them into this, if need be, to prevent what’s coming, which I’m afraid is going to be courts getting involved in springing these detainees once they get to the United Sates. It’s a huge problem and we appreciate your leadership on this, Congressman Stewart of Utah. Let me turn, speaking of that clean Energy business, I know that as a man representing the West you have been very active on this question of the President’s war on coal. Give us a flavor, again, from your multiple vantage points, not only as a Westerner, and a representative in the House of Representatives but also as a man very much imbued with a sense of national security. What are the implications of the policies that he’s adopted in this regard?

Rep. CHRIS STEWART: Well, they’re both tactical and strategic. I mean, the tactical sense, I represent a district, we have coal mines, they’re in very rural areas, where these jobs are, in some cases, the only jobs available, other than agriculture or ranching, and they’re good paying jobs and the President has entirely jerked the rug out from underneath these people. I mean, he said, once again, contrary to what the law may say, he just used regulatory agencies to kind [inaudible] the torpedoes full speed ahead and do what he wants to do. And there are also national security implications on this, although people don’t think about it as often. And that is, you know, the US has this abundance of coal, and clean coal technology has made remarkably advancements. So if you care about the environment like you do, and I do, and I think most Americans do, you want to see that implemented, you want to see that type of clean technology implemented. But when the President was accused of a war on coal during his first election as you may recall, he said ‘Oh no, that’s not true, I don’t’ have a war on coal,’ but his actions have spoken very differently and it’s very clear that he has, and it’s very clear that the last ten months of this administration he’s going to move forward on that.

FRANK GAFFNEY: Speaking of your role in the West, you have also been engaging on an issue that I know is very much on the minds of a lot of people out there, it’s kind of gotten some poster children that may or may not be desirable and as we’re speaking, they’re drama seems to be reaching is [inaudible], namely these folks who have seized federal refuge area, I guess it is, up in Oregon. Talk again if you would, for me, about Congressman, about the struggle over public lands and the US government’s role in them.

Rep. CHRIS STEWART: Look, it’s just an enormous problem in the West. And this is a very emotional issue. I think it’s difficult for people whoa aren’t from the West to appreciate how deep this is in the Western culture; arming and ranching, and that’s not just a job, it’s a lifestyle. And it’s something they want to protect, and we want to help them protect, and the resentment to the federal agencies, who with impunity will come in, entirely uncaring, and reauthorize allotments for grazing and cut them in half. As we said, take away these coal mine jobs, it seems without any input from the local communities, so that’s where it starts. But you know, here in DC, as you know, on any given day we could find people who are protesting, and in many cases they are trespassing to protest, and the police don’t do anything about that, they don’t go in with SWAT teams, and all we ask them to do in this case, is you know, to treat them with the same kind of, I don’t want to say respect, but treat them with the same type of caution that they do with individuals here. Having said that, I also have to add, that if you’re planning a protest and you’re inviting people to come and to bring their arms and their weapons, that’s a bad idea, and that’s not going to have a good outcome, as we’ve seen. And, I just think, I would hope that both sides approach this with a little more caution. There is no one that wins if people get hurt.

FRANK GAFFNEY: Amen, Congressman, we’ll leave it at that for the moment, I know you’ve got to get back to work, thank you very much for your time as always, and for the tremendous service to the country you’ve rendered in uniform and these days, representing the people of the second district of Utah. Keep it up and come back to us again very soon.