A Republican lawmaker on Wednesday invoked the name of Neville Chamberlain, known to history as the British prime minister who tried to appease Hitler, in an attack on President Joe Biden for being soft on Russian leader Vladimir Putin .
It comes after Russian warplanes intercepted a US drone in international airspace, forcing it to crash into the Black Sea.
Rep. Carlos Gimenez, who is a member of the Homeland Security Committee, said Biden’s weakness was to blame for Russia’s audacity.
“Look, Biden could be the chamberlain of our time,” he told Fox News. “And if you don’t know who Chamberlain was, Chamberlain was the guy who [said]: “This is peace in our time” with Hitler as he dealt with Hitler, and this led to World War II.
“And so, when you’re weak, you invite trouble.
“When you are strong, you invite peace.”
British Prime Minister Neville Chambelain returned from a summit with German Chancellor Adolf Hitler in Munich in October 1938 waving their agreement in his hand. He said it was ‘peace for our time’, but Hitler invaded Poland a year later
Rep. Carlos Gimenez (left), who is a member of the Homeland Security Committee, compared Biden’s response to Vladimir Putin’s assault with Chamberlain’s record
Nazi Germany had annexed Austria and was threatening to invade Czechoslovakia in the fall of 1938 when Chamberlain traveled to Munich to meet with Hitler as well as Italian dictator Mussolini and the French prime minister to find a diplomatic solution that would avert war .
The agreement handed over the Sudetenland in western Czechoslovakia to Germany.
Chamberlain also got what he thought was an agreement from Hitler that the deal symbolized the commitment of Germany and the UK not to go to war with each other.
When the British Prime Minister returned to London, he was greeted by cheering crowds.
“I believe this is peace for our time,” he told crowds that gathered outside Buckingham Palace.
But within months, Hitler had annexed the rest of Czechoslovakia. A year later he invaded Poland, leaving Chamberlain’s reputation in tatters.
Gimenez, whose own party is split on whether to stand up to Putin or leave Ukraine to him, used the history lesson to attack Biden.
“This president has shown time and time again throughout his political career that he is completely weak,” he said.
“When it comes to foreign affairs, he will calm down and try to negotiate with people you can’t really negotiate with.
‘You have to have… you have to show strength and that’s the only way to achieve peace – through strength. Never, ever negotiate with bullies, and that’s what Putin is.
According to US officials, the MQ-9 Reaper drone was intercepted by two Russian Su-27 jet planes which dumped fuel on the drone before cutting off its propeller, causing it to crash.
It comes after two Russian fighter jet pilots forced an unnamed US aerial vehicle (UAV, like the one pictured above) over the Black Sea yesterday March 14.
He was one of many voices demanding that the Biden administration hold Moscow responsible for the loss of the MQ-9 Reaper drone.
Senator Lindsey Graham said Biden should threaten to shoot down Putin’s warplanes if they approach US assets even over international waters.
Military officials say the Russian pilots repeatedly dumped fuel on the drone and flew past it in a “reckless” and “professional” manner before a collision caused the US drone to crash.
The senator told Fox News host Sean Hannity that the United States should hold Russia accountable and warned the Kremlin: “If you ever come near another U.S. asset flying in international waters, your plane will be shot down,” according to Newsweek.
He criticized the Biden administration and said the president was acting like “a deer in the headlights” in the face of foreign threats like Russia.
South Carolina GOP Sen. Graham (pictured) says the US should shoot down Russian warplanes that approach a US asset in the airways over international waters
He said weakness creates provocation and that Russia knew it would get away with shooting down the drone because other presidents like Reagan would have already started shooting down Russian planes if they threatened US assets.
Fox News host Mr Hannity suggested Putin may have been watching Biden’s reaction as a Chinese spy balloon flew over the continental United States and was only shot down after a week.
Senator Graham also compared the president to comedian Rodney Dangerfield, who was famous for leading his jokes with the line “I don’t get any respect” because he said “no one” respects the president either.
He warned that if Biden didn’t change his game plan, there would be World War III.
The Russian ambassador has now accused the United States of an “act of provocation” and claims his fighter failed to hit a US drone that crashed into the Black Sea on Tuesday.
“We consider this incident a provocation,” said Anatoly Antonov, Russian Ambassador to the United States.
The senator told Fox News host Seam Hannity that the United States should hold Russia accountable and warned the Kremlin: “If you ever come near another U.S. asset flying in international waters, your plane will be shot down”
He made the comments after being summoned by the US State Department to answer for the downing of one of its surveillance drones in international airspace.
“What would be the reaction of the United States if you see such a Russian drone very close, for example, to San Francisco or New York? Antonov asked reporters as he left the department building in Washington. “For me it is clear, for you too.
The US surveillance drone crashed into the sea after two Russian Su-27 jets ambushed it, dumped fuel on it and eventually hit its propeller, the Pentagon said.
Russia denied any contact and said the drone crashed after “sudden maneuvers”. Its Ministry of Defense claimed the drone was flying towards its airspace with its transponder turned off, and Russian fighters were sent to investigate.
