'Empty & Dangerous': Donald Trump's North Korea Threats Lack Specifics | The 11th Hour

>>> MR. PRESIDENT, THE NORTH KOREANS SAID YESTERDAY YOUR
STATEMENT ON TUESDAY WAS NONSENSE.
DO YOU HAVE ANY RESPONSE TO THAT.
>> I DON'T THINK THEY MEAN THAT, AND I THINK THEY -- IT'S THE
FIRST TIME THEY HAVE HEARD IT LIKE THEY HEARD IT.
THE PEOPLE THAT WERE QUESTIONING THAT STATEMENT, WAS IT TOO
TOUGH? MAYBE IT WASN'T TOUGH ENOUGH.
THEY HAVE BEEN DOING THIS TO OUR COUNTRY FOR A LONG TIME.
FOR MANY YEARS, AND IT'S ABOUT TIME PEOPLE STUCK UP FOR THE
PEOPLE OF OUR COUNTRY, AND THE PEOPLE OF OTHER COUNTRIES.
IF ANYTHING, MAYBE THAT STATEMENT WASN'T TOUGH ENOUGH.
>> PRESIDENT TRUMP DOUBLING DOWN ON HIS THREATS TO NORTH KOREA,
AND A SHORT TIME AFTER THAT, HE VOWED TO GO AFTER THEM IF THEY
TOOK ACTION ON GUAM. >> WE HAVE BEEN SPENT A LOT OF
TIME LOOKING AT, IN PARTICULAR, NORTH KOREA, AND WE ARE
PREPARING FOR MANY DIFFERENT ALTERNATIVE EVENTS WITH NORTH
KOREA. HE HAS DISRESPECTED OUR COUNTRY
GREATLY. HE HAS SAID THINGS THAT ARE
HORRIFIC, AND WITH ME, HE IS NOT GETTING AWAY WITH IT.
HE GOT AWAY WITH IT FOR A LONG TIME BETWEEN HIM AND HIS FAMILY.
HE IS NOT GETTING AWAY -- THIS IS A WHOLE NEW BALL GAME, AND HE
IS NOT GOING TO BE SAYING THOSE THINGS, AND HE IS CERTAINLY NOT
GOING TO BE DOING THOSE THINGS. I READ ABOUT IN GUAM BY AUGUST
15th. LET'S SEE WHAT HE DOES WITH
GUAM. IF HE DOES SOMETHING IN GUAM, IT
WILL BE AN EVENT THE LIKES OF WHICH NOBODY HAS SEEN BEFORE,
WHAT WILL HAPPEN THIS NORTH KOREA.
>> WELL, JOINING US TONIGHT, JEREMY BASH, FORMER CHIEF OF
STAFF AT THE PENTAGON, AND EUGENE ROBINSON, AND WE BROUGHT
IN ELIZABETH FROM "THE NEW YORK TIMES" STICKING AROUND WITH US
ON A THURSDAY NIGHT. WELCOME TO YOU ALL.
JEREMY, WE HAVE NOT HAD THE CHANCE TO TALK TO YOU SINCE THIS
LATEST CHAPTER IN OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH THE KOREAN
PENINSULA. WHERE DO YOU PUT THE STATE OF
PLAY, AND HOW FAR FROM NORMAL IS THIS FOR THE BEHAVIOR OF THE
AMERICAN SIDE? >> A FAR DISTANCE FROM NORMAL,
BRIAN. WHAT STRIKES ME IS HOW OUT OF
SYNC THE COMMANDER OF CHIEF SEEMS TO BE WITH IZ HAD OWN
ESTABLISHMENT AND THE PENTAGON. I READ WHAT THE PRESIDENT PUT
OUT THERE ABOUT BUILDING UP A NUCLEAR ARSENAL.
THE PENTAGON HASN'T DONE ANYTHING, AND THEY ARE
WONDERING, WHAT ORDER WAS GIVEN AND WHAT WAS THE PRESIDENT
REFERRING TO? SAME THING WHEN THE PRESIDENT
TWEETED ABOUT THE TRANSGENDER BAN.
THE CHAIRMAN AND JOINT CHIEFS HAD TO SAY, WE DON'T KNOW WHAT
THE PRESIDENT IS TALKING ABOUT. HOLD THEIR PLACE.
SO TOO WITH NORTH KOREA. THE PRESIDENT IS TALKING ABOUT
MILITARY ACTION, THE LIKES OF WHICH, AS YOU REFERENCED
EARLIER, THE WORLD HAS NEVER SEEN.
THE COMMANDER OF CHIEF HAS NOTO GIVEN THE PENTAGON THE WORD TO
PUT OR FORCES IN POSITION, TO DO ANYTHING MILITARILY.
THIS IS A LOT OF DANGEROUSLY EMPTY RHETORIC.
>> EUGENE, YOU WRITE A LOT ABOUT THE COUNTRY AND THE WORLD, AND
SO YOU KNOW THIS. DNI CLAPPER WAS ON TV TALKING
ABOUT HOW KIM OF NORTH KOREA CRAVES RECOGNITION.
DIRECTOR CLAPPER WENT OVER THERE IN 2014.
ALL HE BROUGHT WAS A LETTER FROM PRESIDENT OBAMA.
HE SAID THE LETTER SAID NOTHING, BUT THE NORTH CRAVED THE RECEIPT
OF THAT LETTER BECAUSE IT MEANT VALIDATION AND RECOGNITION.
WHEN YOU TALK ABOUT THIS GUY AND YOU ARE THE ONLY AMERICAN
PRESIDENT AND NOW FOR TWO DAYS IN A ROW, YOU HAVE MADE PERSONAL
COMMENTS ABOUT HIM AND HIS MILITARY MIGHT AND HIS THREATS,
THAT IS THE RECOGNITION HE CRAVES.
>> ABSOLUTELY. IN A CERTAIN SENSE, THERE MAY BE
HIGH FIVES IN PYONGYANG BECAUSE THIS IS WHAT KIM JONG-UN WANTS.
HE WANTS TO BE SEEN ON AN EQUAL FOOTING WITH THE PRESIDENT OF
THE MOST POWERFUL NATION ON EARTH, AND HEY.
HERE WE ARE. THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED
STATES IS USING THE SAME RHETORIC, HE IS TALKING DIRECTLY
TO KIM. SO IN THAT SENSE, HE WOULD BE
SATISFIED, BUT THE POTENTIAL FOR A MISTAKE HERE IS HUGE.
THE POTENTIAL FOR ERROR, WHAT HAPPENS THE NEXT TIME NORTH
KOREA DECIDES TO TEST ONE OF ITS MISSILES IN ANY DIRECTION?
LET ALONE IN A DIRECTION VAGUELY TOWARDS GUAM?
WHAT SORT OF RESPONSE DOES THE PRESIDENT CONTEMPLATE?
JEREMY IS RIGHT THAT, YOU KNOW, THIS REACTION, THE LIKES OF
WHICH THE WORLD HAS EVER SEEN, THERE ARE NO TROOPS IN PLACE TO
CREATE THAT REACTION RIGHT NOW, BUT YOU HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT
THIS, AND WORRY DEEPLY ABOUT THIS SORT OF LANGUAGE COMING
FROM THIS PRESIDENT. >> ELIZABETH, I WANT YOU TO
WATCH SOMETHING WITH US, AND WE'LL TALK ABOUT IT ON THE OTHER
SIDE, BUT EUGENE JUST REFERENCED THIS.
WE TALKED ABOUT IT EARLIER. THIS PRESIDENT HAS CERTAIN
PHRASEOLOGY FAVORITES LET'S JUST SAY HE TENDS TO REPEAT OVER AND
OVER AGAIN. THE LIKES OF WHICH WE HAVE NEVER
SEEN BEFORE. >> THE LIKES OF WHICH NOBODY HAS
SEEN EVER IN THIS COUNTRY. THE LIKES OF WHICH THERE HAS
NEVER BEEN. THINGS THAT YOU HAVE NEVER SEEN.
NEVER, EVER, EVER SEEN. THE LIKES OF WHICH -- THE LIKES
OF WHICH. THE WORLD HAS NEVER SEEN BEFORE.
THE LIKES OF WHICH. THE LIKES OF WHICH THE WORLD HAS
NEVER SEEN BEFORE. ACTUALLY, THE WORD HAS NEVER
SEEN BEFORE. THERE IS NOTHING TO COMPETE.
THERE HAS NEVER BEEN ANYTHING LIKE THIS.
THEY WILL BE MET WITH FIRE AND FURY LIKE THE WORLD HAS NEVER
SEEN. FIRE, FURY AND FRANKLY, POWER.
THE LIKES OF WHICH THIS WORLD HAS NEVER SEEN BEFORE.
THE LIKES OF WHICH WE HAVE NEVER HAD.
THINGS WILL HAPPEN TO THEM LIKE THEY NEVER THOUGHT POSSIBLE.
IT WILL BE AN EVENT THE LIKES OF WHICH NOBODY HAS SEEN BEFORE,
WHAT WILL HAPPEN IN NORTH KOREA. >> SO WE'RE HAVING A LITTLE FUN
THERE, BUT THIS IS GERMAIN IN THAT HIS NEED FOR SUPERLATIVES
AND HYPERBOLE AT THE END OF A STATEMENT HAS PUT US IN A POLICY
REALM THE LIKES OF WHICH WE HAVE NEVER SEEN BEFORE.
>> THAT WAS QUITE AMAZING TO WATCH THAT.
I THINK -- LET'S NOT FORGET THAT THE PRESIDENT IS A SHOWMAN, AND
THAT'S WHAT I THOUGHT WHEN I WAS WATCHING THAT.
THAT HE -- THAT'S WHEN WE HAVE SEEN THE LAST COUPLE OF DAYS.
ALSO, I WOULD LOVE TO GO BACK AND KNOW WHAT THE SUBJECTS WERE
THAT HE WAS TALKING ABOUT. WHAT WERE THE TOPICS HE WAS
SAYING? I'M WONDERING IF IT WAS HEALTH
CARE AND ALL THE THINGS HE PROMISED THAT HAVEN'T ACTUALLY
HAPPENED. ALL THOSE CAMPAIGN PROMISES
ABOUT THE WALL, HEALTH CARE, IMMIGRATION AND SO FORTH.
SO I THINK THAT HIS -- HIS LANGUAGE IS VERY FRIGHTENING.
WE JUST DON'T KNOW AT THIS POINT WHETHER IT IS -- THERE IS
SOMETHING BEHIND IT. WHETHER IT'S MEANT TO SCARE THE
CHINESE, TO HAVE THEM PRESSURE NORTH KOREA.
WHETHER IT IS GOING TO BE FOLLOWED UP, AND JEREMY IS
RIGHT. HE KNOWS MORE THAN THE REST OF
US WHAT IT TAKES TO ENGAGE IN MILITARY ACTION AGAINST NORTH
KOREA. YOU WOULD HAVE TO GET 250,000
AMERICAN CIVILIANS OUT OF THE KOREAN PENINSULA.
YOU WOULD HAVE TO HAVE -- THERE WOULD HAVE TO BE MORE GROUND
TROOPS AND SHIPS IN THE REGION. NONE OF THAT IS GOING ON RIGHT
NOW. WE ALL WATCHED THE BUILDUP TO
THE WAR IN

'Empty & Dangerous': Donald Trump's North Korea Threats Lack Specifics | The 11th Hour | MSNBC

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