Date of Audio: Mar 2, 2023

Dr. Sebastian Gorka: President Trump, when it comes to China sending surveillance satellite balloons across America, across the whole swath of the nation, would you have waited if you were in the White House to shoot that balloon down after it had completed its mission?

Pres. Donald Trump: Well, it wouldn’t have happened if I was in the White House, number one. They wouldn’t have done it. They knew better. And the other thing is that Russia would not have invaded Ukraine if I were in the White House. And what’s going on there is a horror show. It’s a horror show. Those cities are being leveled. I mean, they’re being leveled. I’ve looked at photos and aerials of cities where there’s not a building standing. And then they’ll say, two people were injured. No. Many, many people are being killed. Many more people are being killed than they’re reporting. Many, many more. And there are a lot of people in those buildings, a lot of people are staying behind. They’re brave people. They love their country. They’re staying behind and they’re sitting in their apartment holding a gun, as an example. And these buildings are coming down one after another and it’s horrible.

And a deal has to be made. It would’ve never happened. But that has to stop and it has to stop right now. And a deal can be negotiated by the right president. If you have a president that knows what he’s doing, you can negotiate a deal even right now. It would’ve been a lot easier early. Putin put those soldiers on the border, and I said, oh, he is looking to negotiate. I was actually a little surprised he did it because nothing happened during my term. You know, during my term, he didn’t take over anything.

“Nothing happened during my term.”

Dr. Sebastian Gorka: Mr. President, it’s so funny with regards to that point you just made. I’m asked frequently, so what would President Trump do if he were still in the White House? And I just laugh and I say, nothing because Putin wouldn’t have invaded.

Pres. Donald Trump: Would’ve never happened. He knew that. And I’ll tell you another thing that wouldn’t have happened. President Xi of China would not be invading — and I think you’re going to see that in the not-too-distant future — Taiwan. I don’t think he would be invading Taiwan either. And also, it had to do with the fact that the Afghanistan removal, the way they left Afghanistan was such a disaster. I think the most embarrassing moment in the history of our country, it showed gross incompetence. And I think that probably helped the decision to go into Ukraine. But it never happened under me.

Dr. Sebastian Gorka: And the fact that Mark Milley is still the chairman of the Joint Chiefs after Afghanistan, after predicting Kyiv would follow in three days, after he admitted in an interview that when you were the president, he was telling his counterpart in the People’s Liberation Army in China that he would warn them if President Trump took any action against China. The fact that that man is still in his uniform, sir?

Pres. Donald Trump: Well, that’s something that should be looked at. I’ve heard that story and we’ve all heard that story. And that’s something, because that’s a very dangerous story if he did that, and he did say it. And they ought to be looking at that because that’s really bad. That’s really bad and really dangerous for the country.

No, I wasn’t a big fan. He wanted to leave all the equipment behind. I said, “Why would you leave the equipment behind?”

“Sir, it’s cheaper to leave it behind in Afghanistan.”

And I would’ve never left it behind. I said, “You mean it’s cheaper to leave a hundred-million-dollar airplane behind than it is to fill up the tank and just fly it out, even if you just went to Pakistan or someplace else to hold it before you bring it over? But you fly it back to the United States. You think that’s cheaper?”

“Yes, sir. It’s cheaper.”

That’s when I lost him. I lost him. I wasn’t a big fan of the fact that he didn’t like me standing in front of a church holding a Bible either, by the way. I wasn’t a big fan of him.

Dr. Sebastian Gorka: And if you are back in office for 2024, what are your expectations for how the war in Ukraine would develop? Would Putin start behaving himself if you were back in the position of commander in chief?

Pres. Donald Trump: I would have that war ended within 24 hours. That war would end within 24 hours. That war would never have started. And it could, even now as bad as it is, and you can imagine how it’ll be if it continues to go. It’s just a horrible thing in terms of humanity, in terms of life. It’s a horrible thing and it must stop. And Ukraine is being just decimated. These people are talking about Ukraine. Ukraine is being decimated. These are cities that don’t even exist anymore. They’re being hit by missile after missile after missile. And they have to stop and we can stop it immediately.

The post Donald J. Trump on Ukraine: “I would have that war ended within 24 hours” appeared first on The Daybreak Daily.

Transcribed and modified for publication from the original audio program.