{"id":1864,"date":"2017-04-16T12:04:18","date_gmt":"2017-04-16T16:04:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/press.nbcnews.com\/?p=1864"},"modified":"2017-04-16T12:04:18","modified_gmt":"2017-04-16T16:04:18","slug":"mtp-exclusive-mccain-says-china-is-key-to-north-korea-we-should-expect-them-to-prevent-what-could-be-a-cataclysmic-event","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nbcuniversalnewsgroup.com\/nbcnews\/2017\/04\/16\/mtp-exclusive-mccain-says-china-is-key-to-north-korea-we-should-expect-them-to-prevent-what-could-be-a-cataclysmic-event\/","title":{"rendered":"MTP EXCLUSIVE: MCCAIN SAYS \u2018CHINA IS KEY\u2019 TO NORTH KOREA, \u2018WE SHOULD EXPECT THEM TO PREVENT WHAT COULD BE A CATACLYSMIC EVENT\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

EXCLUSIVE: Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) on North Korea: \u201cThis may be the first test of this presidency\u201d <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

EXCLUSIVE: Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.) says Trump \u201cneeds a much stronger State Department\u201d<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

EXCLUSIVE: DHS Sec. John Kelly calls on Congress to fix U.S. immigration laws: \u201cI would hope that the Congress fixes a lot of these problems\u201d<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

PLUS: Kelly on drug trafficking into the U.S.: \u201cMarijuana is not a factor in the drug war\u201d<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

APRIL 16, 2017 — In an exclusive live interview this morning, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee,<\/strong> told \u201cMeet the Press\u201d moderator Chuck Todd that \u201cChina is the key\u201d to working with us on North Korea: \u201cThey can stop this if they want to because of their control over the North Korean economy \u2026 Whether they\u2019re currency manipulators or not, we should expect them to act to prevent what could be a cataclysmic event.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis may be the first test of this presidency,\u201d the senator added. Watch the full exclusive interview with the Arizona senator.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cAs Senator McCain indicated, China is key to that strategy,\u201d echoed Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee.<\/strong> President Trump is \u201cgetting good military advice from General Mattis and General McMaster, but he needs a much stronger State Department.\u201d Watch the full exclusive interview with the Rhode Island senator.<\/a><\/p>\n

Also joining the broadcast exclusively was Gen. John Kelly (Ret.), U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security,<\/strong> who told Todd that, in response to a threat from North Korea, \u201cWe would raise various threat levels in the event that something happened, and we felt as though that there was a possible threat. You always want to come down on the side of caution.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kelly offered an example of someone who wasn\u2019t deported in previous administrations that is being deported now: \u201cSomeone, as an example, with multiple DUIs. Even a single DUI, depending on other aspects, would get you into the system.\u201d He also called on Congress to fix the country\u2019s immigration laws: \u201cWe have to straighten this out, and I place that squarely on the United States Congress.\u201d Watch the full exclusive interview with Kelly, his first Sunday show interview.<\/a><\/p>\n

And on this Easter Sunday, Pastor JoAnn Hummel <\/strong>of Bent Tree Bible Fellowship, Bishop T.D. Jakes<\/strong> of The Potter\u2019s House of Dallas and Rabbi David Saperstein<\/strong> of the Union for Reform Judaism joined Todd to discuss the role of religion in a time of heightened political rhetoric.<\/a><\/p>\n

This morning\u2019s roundtable was comprised of The New York Times Magazine\u2019s Mark Leibovich<\/strong>, Demos\u2019 Heather McGhee<\/strong>, NBC News\u2019 Andrea Mitchell<\/strong> and former Sen. John E. Sununu (R-N.H.)<\/strong> of The Boston Globe. Their conversations included addressing the president\u2019s tweet this morning on his tax returns.<\/a><\/p>\n

Read the full transcript of this morning\u2019s \u201cMeet the Press.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

For more from moderator Chuck Todd throughout the week, watch <\/strong>MSNBC\u2019s \u201cMTP Daily\u201d<\/strong><\/a> weekdays at 5 p.m., and subscribe to the <\/strong>\u201c1947: The Meet the Press Podcast\u201d<\/strong><\/a> for on-demand interviews.<\/p>\n

MANDATORY CREDIT: NBC\u2019S \u201cMEET THE PRESS WITH CHUCK TODD\u201d \u00a0<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n