Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) wasted no time shutting down “Meet the Press” host Chuck Todd on Sunday when Todd suggested that President Joe Biden had made a mistake when he called Russian President Vladimir Putin a “war criminal” this week.
Todd asked Murphy:
“President Biden called Putin a war criminal this week. There are a lot of people who agree with that assessment but question whether the president himself should have personalized it. Where are you in this?”
The senator replied:
“I don’t think you can do anything other than call Vladimir Putin a war criminal He is! I mean, what he’s doing right now as we speak, targeting children, maternity wards, schools inside Ukraine clearly crosses a line.”
That led the NBC host to follow up by inquiring:
“We’re going to negotiate with a war criminal? That is what’s difficult here, right? We didn’t negotiate with [former Serbian President Slobodan Milošević].”
Murphy:
“President Biden is showing moral leadership just like President Zelenskyy is showing moral leadership. There are a lot of Republican colleagues now who are using their time to criticize President Biden, vote against Ukraine aid on the floor of the House and the Senate while President Biden is standing up there saying and doing the right thing.
“So I’m proud of President Biden for drawing a moral line against Vladimir Putin. I’d rather have my Republican colleagues supporting him rather than attacking him.”
There can be no doubt that Vladimir Putin is a war criminal. Anyone who orders the bombing of residential areas, uses cluster bombs, and doesn’t care if his troops target women, children, and the elderly is beyond the pale.
When Russia’s illegal and immoral invasion of Ukraine is over with, Putin needs to be dragged of of the Kremlin and placed on trial for crimes against humanity. If he’s found guilty, he should face the same fate as the Nazis convicted at the Nuremberg trials after World War II: To swing from a hangman’s noose.