After Brussels, Ron pushes for real solutions to keep our country safe

After Brussels, Ron keeps pushing for real solutions to keep America safe. “Americans are growing weary of leadership that refuses to acknowledge harsh realities and a president who dances a tango and attends a ballgame with a brutal dictator instead of addressing the threats facing our nation.”

 

From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: 

On a more serious note, Johnson released a statement Monday in response to recent terrorist attacks in Belgium and Pakistan, and criticized the Obama administration.

“This will be a long struggle, and we must recognize that the strategy of peace through withdrawal has been a miserable failure,” Johnson said. “Americans are growing weary of leadership that refuses to acknowledge harsh realities and a president who dances a tango and attends a ballgame with a brutal dictator instead of addressing the threats facing our nation.”

Johnson added, “America hungers for leaders who understand we must become stronger economically so we can provide the leadership that is necessary to keep our homeland safe and defeat Islamic terrorists wherever they are hiding, plotting and killing.”

From the Hill:

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), asked about the importance of security in the upcoming election, quickly pivoted to former Democratic Sen. Russ Feingold’s vote against the Patriot Act in 2001.

“My opponent, Sen. Feingold, was the only senator that voted against giving our national security and law enforcement individuals the tools they needed to keep this nation safe,” he told a local radio station Wednesday. “Voters need to keep that in mind: who is actually for national security, and who is going to be dangerously weak on it.”

Feingold cited concerns over First Amendment violations and undermining due process during a floor speech explaining his vote against the Patriot Act.

Republicans have repeatedly targeted Feingold on national security and foreign policy. They’ve been eager to tie the former senator to the Obama administration, particularly on his support for the Iran nuclear deal.

Johnson has also touted his role as chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, where he oversees the Department of Homeland Security.

His comments come after the Tuesday attacks in Brussels, which killed at least 31 people and sparked concern from GOP lawmakers who say Obama isn’t doing enough to defeat the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

From CNN: 

The Senate’s homeland security chairman says he is “highly concerned” that infrastructure like power plants in the United States and Europe is vulnerable to ISIS attacks.

Senate Homeland Security Committee Chairman Ron Johnson, R-Wisconsin, said in an interview with CNN’s Jake Tapper on “State of the Union” Sunday that he’s worried about reports that the terrorists who attacked Brussels had also staked out and planned a strike on a nuclear power plant.
“I’m highly concerned about that, but not only in Europe — look at the attack on the Metcalf power station in California. We have not solved that. That’s a very disconcerting chain of events here,” Johnson said, referring to the 2013 sniper attack on a California energy grid substation, which took out power to parts of Silicon Valley.
He continued: “So trust me, our critical infrastructure is vulnerable to cyber-attack, to potential terrorist attack, and we are not taking this threat seriously enough. So it’s very concerning.”
Johnson called for “more robust” surveillance and a stronger U.S. military role in the Middle East.