http://dyn.politico.com/printstory.cfm?uuid=FC6B4E9E-5BE8-4421-B730-11793ABF772C John McCain mocks Joe Biden: ‘Or else what?’
By: Jonathan Topaz
April 22, 2014 08:03 AM EDT
Sen. John McCain was unimpressed with Vice President Joe Biden’s comments in Ukraine on Tuesday and the Arizona Republican suggested that the Obama administration was not backing up its tough talk against Russia.
Speaking in Ukraine, the vice president said that “we call on Russia to stop supporting men hiding behind masks in unmarked uniforms sewing unrest in eastern Ukraine.” McCain, appearing on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” on Tuesday, responded to Biden’s remarks with a question: “Or else what?”
“Or else what?” McCain repeated. “If they continue to do this, what will we do?”
The Senate Armed Services Committee member has been a frequent critic of the Obama administration on many foreign policy issues, including Ukraine and Syria. On Tuesday, McCain said the administration needs to show greater support for Ukraine and back up its rhetoric. He also urged the White House to “tell the American people why it’s important that [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s aggression not continue.”
“It’s time we said the people of Ukraine deserve free and fair elections, they deserve our support,” McCain said.
He also said that President Barack Obama “does not appreciate, in my view, the importance of American leadership.”