FILE – In this Oct. 28, 2020, file photo President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally at Laughlin/Bullhead International Airport in Bullhead City, Ariz (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
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UPDATED 8:08 AM PT – Monday, February 14, 2022
The 45th president recently addressed the Freedom Convoy and U.S. involvement in the Ukraine crisis.
Donald Trump said the tensions between Russia and Ukraine as well as the U.S.’s involvement should have never happened. During an interview Saturday, the 45th president said he understands why GOP leaders are proposing a bill that would block U.S. military assistance to Ukraine until the U.S. southern border is secured.
Trump, who was three weeks away from getting the wall built on the southern border before leaving office, reiterated his sympathy for leaders who are fed up with Biden not putting Americans first.
“All of a sudden, this guy takes over and the border is open,” he stated. “{We have millions of people — I think it’s 10 million, they say 3 million — but people coming in from countries all over the world. Releasing their prisoners into our country, we’re like a dumping ground. So I can certainly understand how people feel when they say , you know, let’s try to tie one to the other. We fight for other people’s borders, but we don’t fight for our own border.”
Truckers are pictured in Canada’s capital protesting COVID-related mandates and restrictions. (AP Photo)
In regards to the Freedom Convoy protesting vaccine mandates at the northern border, Trump commended the demonstrators for their bravery. He also acknowledged many of those participating in the protests are U.S. citizens who have had enough of the mandates in their own country.
“People all over the world are watching and have respect for what they are doing,” he noted. “They are tired of being pushed around by incompetent people, being told what to do, being forced with the mandates should have not happened.”
When asked about how he would have handled the pandemic, Trump said he would have left it up to local and state governments to decide what’s best for their state. Now that multiple Democrat-run states are easing up on mandates, the 45th president pointed out how Republican-led states handled COVID-19 recovery efforts far better than the left.