On Thursday’s “CNN News Central,” Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) stated that “there’s evidence” that adversaries like Russia, Iran, and Venezuela target Americans for wrongful detention to negotiate the release of criminals, but we can’t just leave Americans in foreign nations and that criticism from the right that the prisoner swap with Russia encourages the detention of more Americans is “just nonsense.”
After Moskowitz said that the deal is a win for the United States, co-host Boris Sanchez asked, “I’m wondering if you see cases like this becoming more of a pattern, this sort of state-sponsored hostage-taking where rivals like Iran, Russia, or Venezuela target Americans specifically for leverage to then negotiate the release of actual criminals.”
Moskowitz responded, “Look, I think there’s evidence of that Boris, and that’s why we tell Americans not to go to certain places. But, obviously, this country’s going to do whatever [it] can to get back [its] citizens. And so, yes, it’s a double-edged sword. Our enemies know that we’ll do everything we can to get back our citizens, but what is the other choice, to leave Americans in these places? And so, look, that’s why the travel warnings are important. But, obviously, we’re going to do everything we can, that, if Americans are taken hostage, we’re going to do what we can to get them safely home.”
Sanchez followed up, “I’d like to dig in on a portion of that, Congressman, because there’s criticism from some on the right that this kind of deal actually encourages the arrest of more Americans. How do you respond to that?”
Moskowitz answered, “Well, that’s just nonsense. They’re just mad that it happened under Joe Biden. They should just be honest, right? If Donald Trump got them back and we exchanged the prisoners that we had, they wouldn’t care. So, they’re just making it partisan, which is a shame, because, for these families, this is a big deal.”
Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett
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