美国国家公共电台 NPR Trump Adviser Says One Of The GOP Nominee's Signature Plans Is 'Not Workable'

Trump 1 Adviser 2 Says One Of The GOP Nominee's Signature Plans Is 'Not Workable'

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Fifty Republican security experts released a letter yesterday saying Trump is unfit to be president, said he'd be the most reckless president in American history. Trump does have the support of a longtime Democrat 3, retired 4 Lieutenant 5 General Michael Flynn. Flynn is a former head of the Defense 6 Intelligence Agency, and he's a critic of President Obama's Syria policy. He spoke 7 at the Republican Convention. He's also written a book called "The Field Of Fight," which portrays 8 the United States facing a loose coalition 9 of enemies, such as Iran and Russia. If Trump is friendly toward Russia, Flynn thinks that's OK. There must be some relationship. And like his candidate, Flynn also sees a problem with radical 10 Islam.

MICHAEL FLYNN: Something is happening in this Islamic ideology 11. And the rise of radical Islamism is really dangerous for the world. And we cannot have this just sort of, well, we're always going to have to deal with this problem. I don't think that that's a good answer.

INSKEEP: Do you think that banning Muslims from entering the United States and sending that signal to all of them around the world is going to encourage Muslims to take a friendlier posture 12 toward the West?

FLYNN: This is not about a permanent ban. This is about understanding what is happening with this rapid rise of radical Islamism. And we know, Steve, that the Islamic State has - and they've stated it - they actually stated it in their various media outlets 13 - that they are going to infiltrate 14 into the refugee populations that are entering different countries around the world. They've said that. So I think that what we have to do is we have to recognize, how do we screen, vet 15 and properly, you know, document those individuals who are coming into our country...

INSKEEP: You raise a good point, General, when you talk about...

FLYNN: Yeah.

INSKEEP: ...Clarifying this. And I appreciate you saying that because Trump initially 16 did say he wanted not a permanent, but a temporary ban of...

FLYNN: Right.

INSKEEP: ...All Muslims...

FLYNN: Right, right.

INSKEEP: Then he began making exceptions. Maybe there's some Muslims he would let in. Then he gave a national security speech at which he, instead of a religion, which was widely criticized, talked about banning people from particular countries where terrorists were active. Critics have since noted 17 that you'd have to ban people from France. You'd have to ban people from the United States from coming to the United States because there's been terrorist acts all over the world. In the end, do we have here a laudable effort to protect the United States from all harm that is just not workable at all?

FLYNN: Well, I think that's a great question to ask. And I would love to hear that question, Steve, asked in one of the upcoming debates. I think that our responsibility is for safety and protection of American citizens abroad and at home. I think that's the principal duty, you know...

INSKEEP: But does that...

FLYNN: ...What...

INSKEEP: I asked, is this just not workable to ban whole classes of people? You agree with that - that it's not working.

FLYNN: Well, I - yeah. I mean, you can't just say, you know, blanket. But what you have to do is recognize that we have a completely different threat environment that we are dealing 18 with now. So we have to think differently, and we have to use some imagination. And we have to still protect our American values and what we represent to the rest of the world. So to put a blanket on any organization, any segment of the population, is not workable. But we do have to recognize what types of things must we be able to do to continue to protect our own country and our way of life.

INSKEEP: One other thing I want to ask about, General Flynn...

FLYNN: Yeah.

INSKEEP: ...Some people will know that you spent more than 30 years in the military. How much does experience matter when you're trying to make wise decisions about foreign policy?

FLYNN: Yeah, I think experience matters a lot. I think judgment 19 matters a lot. I think that instincts come with experience. I do think that there is also something to be said about accountability and responsibility. I believe that we have a political class in our country that has - doesn't even know what accountability and responsibility even means anymore to the American public. And that includes one of the, you know, one of the candidates running for president United States, and that's Hillary Clinton. I just - I don't see that.

INSKEEP: I want to zero in on one thing that you said you said. You said experience was important for so many reasons, one of them being that it helps you develop the right instincts. You're supporting a candidate who has no experience in foreign policy and says that he relies on his instincts, rather than reading a lot of books, for example. What evidence, specifically, have you seen that he has mastered foreign policy questions?

FLYNN: Well, I would say, one, is he's got a good grasp for the kind of people that he does bring around him, and he's a great listener. I know that in some of the conversations - very strategic conversations about, you know, the way the world is and the way the world can be if America remains 20 very strong, especially economically, you know, there's an awful lot of presidents that, prior to becoming the president, had very little experience, to include Barack Obama. I mean, Barack Obama had almost zero foreign policy experience, if any.

INSKEEP: Lieutenant General Michael Flynn. Thanks very much, General.

FLYNN: Thanks, Steve.

INSKEEP: General Flynn has advised Donald Trump and is the author of "The Field Of Fight: How We Can Win The Global War Against Radical Islam And Its Allies."