SFR is with Rep. Chris Stewart of Utah

Gaffney: Welcome back, it is my great pleasure to have with us one of the men in Congress whom I admire most. He is Congressman Chris Stewart of the great state of Utah. He is among other things, a command pilot in the United States Air Force record-holding pilot at that and now retired. He is a successful business owner, he is a patent holder, he is the author of well over a dozen books; a number of them bestsellers; including New York Times bestsellers, he is in short; and overachiever of the first order but you’d never from talking to him. He is one of the most modest self-facing and yet, extraordinary men I’ve had the privilege of knowing and we’re adequately appreciative of his time in Congress not representing the people of the 2nd District of Utah. Congressman Stewart thanks for joining us once again, welcome back.

Stewart: Always good to be with you and you’re always too kind, it’s a pleasure. Thank you.

Gaffney: I wanted to visit with you at least briefly about the breaking news. I’d like to get your thoughts on the vote by the British people to exit the European Union.

Stewart: Well I think it’s a great decision. I think they’ve given so much of their sovereignty, they have given so much of their freedom, and so much of their ability to self govern over to a Union that they had so little control over, an enormous democracy, individuals who weren’t elected and impossible to hold accountable. I think it encapsulates allot of the feelings Americans are feeling right now and you know they held over their head this kind of threat that if you do this, its going to be economic ruin. A: I don’t believe that’s true and B, even if their is an economic price, it’s a small price to pay for your sovereignty. It’s a small price to pay for freedom.

Gaffney: You know it really is an object lesson and I know you’re one of those who understand this business of seventy and how accountable government really matters in terms of the quality of government. Do you anticipate Congressman Stewart, you’re a member of the Intelligence Committee and I don’t know if you’ve addressed this in the committee, that they’re may be others bailing out on the European Union in Britain’s wake?

Stewart: Well it certainty looks something that wave looked at and we’re not only ones with questions. You know, everyone has asked, will this lead others to consider to leave and again that was one of the threats that those who were trying to encourage Britain to stay was don’t leave now, so many will follow and there’s others their worried about obviously and they may but once again, if the Union isn’t serving the people, if the European Union isn’t at the end of the day, actually improving people’s lives rather than hindering people’s lives or hindering commerce or hindering the types of decisions that people just fundamentally expect everyday; then they should leave and this may be kind of that engine that starts reform in the Union and if they can reform, encourage others well good for them, I’m happy for that. But they shouldn’t force them to stay and of course they can’t and they shouldn’t threaten them as they threatened Britain with economic repercussions if they didn’t stay. It’s just undemocratic.

Gaffney: Well you know, among those who were making those kind of threats of course was our own President. Do you anticipate that the United States government will be now trying to well impose penalties on Britain for having taking this step?

Stewart: Well, I think again, they may consider and this President can be petulant and frankly, he leads from a position of [inaudible] in many ways. He seems to hold a grudge. I hope they don’t. I actually don’t think they will. I mean, Britain is one of the largest economies in the world, let’s not forget that. I believe the 5th largest economy. They’ve shown a certain amount of resiliency for heavens sake. I think it’s in everyone’s interest that they continue to have a strong economic relationship [inaudible] that could happen regardless, there’s nothing this president could do especially in the short term he has left. [Inaudible] relationship that we have for a hundred and [inaudible] years. Just respect the will of the people. Look at this now as how can we continue and I’m sure we will. I mean we’ll see what happens.

Gaffney: You’ve had a spectacle in the House of Representatives this week with the Minority taking physically control of the Chamber of the House to make their argument that the business of the people must be turned to gun control in the aftermath of this attack in Orlando. Id like to ask you again as a member of the Intelligence Committee, as a member of the Appropriations Committee’s Homeland Security Subcommittee; if you think this is an incident of gun violence, what took place in Orlando and if the appropriate response is A. more gun control and B. this kind of ceiling by the Democrats.

Stewart: My heavens Frank, I mean it’s Orwellian what we’ve watched happen over the last ten days. This was so clearly a terrorist attack. This is no question about it. If you talk to the FBI, ask them are you investigating this? They will tell you under international terrorism, this was a terrorist attack and they have been [inaudible]. With the aide of the administration with the aiding and embedding of the media to turn this into some type crazy individual who got access to a gun. Its like we’ve seen in the past, this isn’t that and honestly, some of my friends, my Democratic colleagues who I genuinely had respect for and to watch some of their behavior over the last few days and to watch them on the floor and its like you turn in your college freshman dorm class. At some point then you become a serious member of Congress and too many of them stepped back into their college days. It was inappropriate, it didn’t serve the people, it was an act of lawlessness in many ways and it was Cleary at this point [inaudible].

Gaffney: They’re threatening as I understand it to resume when you all come back from the after the 4th of July recess, do you anticipate that that will be tolerated by the Majority?

Stewart: Well I hope not and at some point if they do resume, we’re going to reassert our authority which doesn’t to take over the people’s House like this and you accomplish nothing by doing this and I would remind them the bill that they wanted to pass has already failed in the Senate for heavens sake. We had a similar vote that very day in Appropriations mark up on Homeland Security and it failed. It wasn’t even close. It was 31 to 17 including having several Democrats vote with us. So they know that its not like this legislation is going to pass. And by the way Frank, there’s this 2nd Amendment, the Constitution-the thing there proposing is actually unconstitutional and your hearing this from someone who’s spent the majority of my time on intelligent issues which I’ve sworn to protect the American people and I understand this is a terrorist attack, I understand we want them to stop these kinds of attacks in the future, so I’m not being passive in this but at the same time, we can’t give up constitutional protective rights and that’s what there asking us to do.

Gaffney: Well you’ve sworn an oath both in your military capacity Congressman Chris Stewart and of course as a member of Congress to uphold and defend the constitution of the United States last time I checked and it is extraordinary that people are talking as is been made evident by a number of us, stripping 2nd Amendment rights without due process as a response to an act of jihad. I don’t where to begin saying how wrong that is.

Stewart: Frank if I could add one more thing to this. Does anyone believe that as long as ISIS is as powerful as they are, as effective as they are in their propaganda remain unhindered in the Lang that they control, that anyone believe [inaudible]. The answer to this isn’t to take away constitutional rights, the answer to go defeat ISIS and this president has promised as he would when he had no intention of doing it and he’s demonstrated in his intentions by his lack of effort to actually impede on the battlefield.

Gaffney: Well if it were just ISIS and were if it just the battlefield and were just the problem of his inattention to defeated them, it would be bad enough but as you know so well Congressman Chris Stewart, we’re dealing with a global jihad movement which happens to be doing business under a whole bunch of different names, franchises, banners and sects and some of them of them are operating in our own country, including at least the Muslim Brotherhood and we’re appreciate your support for efforts to get them designated as a terrorist organization and hopefully get them removed from the position to exercise influence our government let alone subvert our country and constitution as well. We have it to leave it at that for the moment. Congressman thank you so much for your time, we’re anxious to talk about a bunch of other things, I hope you’ll come back again soon.