Political Quotes

“It says to the people of Poland, to the people of Lithuania, to the people of Latvia, to the people of Estonia--nations that long knew the boot of Soviet occupation and oppression--that they should be afraid; that they cannot count on the United States; that they must provide for their own security. In the trip I just took to Poland, Polish leadership said: Even though there has been a change in their election, they will not change. They are committing 4 percent of their GDP to their national defense-- the highest of any NATO nation. They are welcoming Americans to participate. As you well remember, my colleague from Chicago--from Illinois--we went to Poland, and we went to Lithuania together, just before Russia launched its second broad-scale invasion of Ukraine. We saw Americans training alongside Pols at the Lask Air Force Base. We saw Americans training alongside other Baltic nations, right on the border with Belarus. And then the war began. The sense of the urgency of history was thick in the air as we got on a flight to come back to the United States, as the missiles and bullets were flying, as Russia's invasion of Ukraine began at full scale, and we did not know what would happen. In every meeting, in every conversation, the folks we met with said it was crucial that the United States be the guarantor of NATO, be the backbone of this collective alliance that has kept us safe and free.…”