GOP lawmaker: ‘Quit electing’ Dems for national security

Rep. Trent Franks (R-Ariz.) said Wednesday that Americans would have to quit voting for Democrats if they hope to bolster U.S. national security.

“The American people are going to have to wake up on something,” Franks said on Fox Business Network. “If they want this country to be secure, they better quit electing liberal, left-wing Democrats for national security purposes, because it isn’t working out very well.”

In the interview, the Arizona Republican placed blame on former Democratic Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama for fueling the rapid advancement of North Korea’s weapons programs and a downsizing of the U.S. military.

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Tensions between the U.S. and North Korea escalated this week after President Trump threatened to unleash “fire and fury” on the reclusive country if it continues to threaten the U.S. 

That followed reports that North Korea had developed a miniaturized nuclear warhead small enough to be delivered by a ballistic missile. 

North Korea’s military responded to Trump’s warning on Tuesday, saying that it was examining a possible strike on Guam, a U.S. territory in the Pacific that hosts about 6,000 troops. 

While some administration officials like Secretary of State Rex Tillerson have defended the president’s rhetoric on North Korea, Trump has also come under fire by some lawmakers who say he is unnecessarily escalating the confrontation with Pyongyang.

North Korea has stepped up the pace of its missile tests since Trump took office in January. Last month, it successfully tested for the first time an intercontinental ballistic missile believed to be capable of striking the continental U.S.