North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum suggested that a fear of former President Donald J. Trump was the reason why Russia agreed to a prisoner swap to free Americans held captive by the Putin regime.
The exchange that freed Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former Marine Paul Whelan among others had the media singing the praises of lame duck President Joe Biden, a man who has little use for diplomacy when it comes to the Russians.
During a Thursday appearance on Fox News, Burgum told “America’s Newsroom” hosts Bill Hemmer and Dana Perino that it was a “day of gratitude and celebration” but the former GOP presidential candidate said that the credit belongs to Trump.
(Video Credit: Fox News)
After thanking the hosts for keeping the names of the hostages alive in the public, Burgum said, “The Biden administration is clear, the reason why Russia wanted to do this deal now is that they think that President Trump’s going to win and they don’t want to deal with him.”
“Biden’s track record on these hostage negotiations, I mean you go back just to September of last year, paying 6 billion dollars to the Iranians for five hostages, I mean he put a price tag on every American’s head when he did that,” Burgum continued. “Made it less safe for anyone traveling abroad when he does that.”
“And then, of course, this is a positive blip but the trend line is you know, we’re in a proxy war with Russia escalating, and of course what going on with Iran and Israel, that’s also escalating,” the governor added. “This is I think you know a great, fabulous for the families but it’s a political move, and why Russia would go now and get maximum concessions from a weak President Biden.”
Gershkovich had been jailed since last year when he was arrested and charged with spying. Whelan was apprehended by Russian security services on charges of espionage in 2018 and sentenced to 16 years in prison in 2020.
He could have been freed much earlier but Biden was more concerned with securing the release of an anti-American, lesbian pothead women’s basketball player than the ex-Marine.
Trump had some questions about the deal.
“So when are they going to release the details of the prisoner swap with Russia? How many people do we get versus them? Are we also paying them cash? Are they giving us cash (Please withdraw that question, because I’m sure the answer is NO)? Are we releasing murderers, killers, or thugs? Just curious because we never make good deals, at anything, but especially hostage swaps,” the Republican nominee wrote in a Thursday post to Truth Social.
“Our ‘negotiators’ are always an embarrassment to us! I got back many hostages, and gave the opposing Country NOTHING – and never any cash. To do so is bad precedent for the future. That’s the way it should be, or this situation will get worse and worse. They are extorting the United States of America. They’re calling the trade ‘complex’ – That’s so nobody can figure out how bad it is!” Trump said.
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