Johnson on VA Sec. Shulkin’s Firing on Twitter: ‘Not the Way I’d Do It’
Tune In Tomorrow Morning as Shulkin Joins “Meet the Press with Chuck Todd”
MARCH 31, 2018 – In an exclusive interview with “Meet the Press” moderator Chuck Todd, Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) addressed President Donald Trump’s firing of officials on Twitter: “It’s not the way I’d do it. … The president needs to understand the effect it has on attracting other people.”
On the president’s firing of Veteran Affairs Sec. David Shulkin this week, Johnson said, “The IG report’s pretty troubling, and you know, presidents do deserve to have advisors that actually agree with them.” He added, “We’ve had some high-quality individuals in that position, and they haven’t made a whole lot of progress.”
See below for a transcript of this exchange; watch it here.
Tune in for more of Johnson’s exclusive interview tomorrow morning on “Meet the Press” as well an interview with former Sec. Shulkin.
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CHUCK TODD:
As a senator, you have to provide advice and consent on cabinet nominees. We have another opening, this time, at VA, Veterans Affairs. Number one, Secretary Shulkin, should he have been fired? Did the president do the right thing?
RON JOHNSON:
I think the IG report’s pretty troubling. And you also, you know, presidents do deserve and have advisors that actually agree with them on policies. And apparently, there were some policy disputes.
CHUCK TODD:
So you think the firing was justified.
RON JOHNSON:
But it’s a completely thankless job. I mean, we’ve had some, some, you know, high-quality individuals in, in that position. And they haven’t made a whole lot of progress.
CHUCK TODD:
What about the way it was done? This is the third person the president has fired by Twitter just in the last month.
RON JOHNSON:
It’s not, not – It’s not the way I’d do it. It’s not the way I’d do it.
CHUCK TODD:
This isn’t the way to recruit good people to replace them, is it?
RON JOHNSON:
It’s not the way I’d do it.
CHUCK TODD:
You would understand if people were like, “I don’t know if I want to take this job.”
RON JOHNSON:
I think the president does need to understand the effect it has on attracting other people.
CHUCK TODD:
And you think that this could lead to a brain drain? Are you concerned about that?
RON JOHNSON:
I’m concerned about all kinds of things, Chuck.
CHUCK TODD:
You seem to be hesitant. You seem to be hesitant with your criticism. You seem to be annoyed. You seem to be unhappy with how things are going and how he’s handling some of these things. But you do hold back. Why?
RON JOHNSON:
I don’t envy any president. They’re tasked. We have enormous challenges facing this nation. I tried to work with President Obama in terms of making this country more prosperous, greater opportunity, reduce the debt and deficit. I want to see any president succeed in their prime mission of keeping this nation safe and secure. So it doesn’t help to be overly critical of any president, if you’re actually trying to help them accomplish their goals.
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For more information, contact:
Olivia Petersen
NBC News
o: (202) 885-4159
e: olivia.petersen@nbcuni.com
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NBC NEWS’ “MEET THE PRESS WITH CHUCK TODD”
“Meet the Press with Chuck Todd” is where newsmakers come to make news — setting the political agenda and spotlighting the impact Washington decision-making has on Americans across the country. It is the #1 most-watched Sunday public affairs show across the board for the 2016-2017 season, reaching more than three million viewers every Sunday and millions more through social, digital and on-demand platforms. “Meet the Press” brings its authority and influencer interviews to MSNBC with “MTP Daily” weekdays at 5 p.m. ET and to the “1947: The Meet the Press Podcast”. It’s the longest-running show in television history, having celebrated its 70th anniversary in 2017 with the launch of its first-ever film festival in collaboration with the American Film Institute this November. Chuck Todd is the political director of NBC News and the moderator of “Meet the Press“; John Reiss is the executive producer.
