Elon Musk is “not a critical man”, mentioned Mark Kelly, the US fighter pilot and astronaut turned Arizona Democratic senator, after the Tesla proprietor and shut Donald Trump ally referred to as him a “traitor” for visiting Ukraine in help of its combat in opposition to Russia’s invading troops.
On Sunday, Kelly posted to social media pictures of his go to and a prolonged assertion.
“Simply left Ukraine,” he mentioned. “What I noticed proved to me we are able to’t hand over on the Ukrainian folks. Everybody desires this struggle to finish, however any settlement has to guard Ukraine’s safety and may’t be a giveaway to [Vladimir] Putin,” referring to the Russian president who ordered his navy to invade Ukraine in February 2022.
Musk, who owns X, on which Kelly posted, responded: “You’re a traitor.”
Kelly mentioned: “Traitor? Elon, in the event you don’t perceive that defending freedom is a primary tenet of what makes America nice and retains us protected, perhaps you need to go away it to these of us who do.”
In Washington on Monday, Kelly was requested about Musk’s cost.
“Clearly, he’s not a critical man,” Kelly mentioned.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine, the latter has acquired substantial help from the US and Europe. Kelly’s current go to was his third. It got here amid worldwide consternation over Trump’s abandonment of Kyiv and courting of Moscow.
The president and aides have mentioned they need peace however have taken controversial steps, together with beginning talks with out Ukraine; hectoring the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a tempestuous White Home assembly; suspending navy help and intelligence sharing.
On Monday, Kelly shared additional ideas.
“I simply bought again from 36 hours in Ukraine,” he wrote. “Needed to share a narrative from whereas we had been there. At a hospital, we talked with a wounded Ukrainian soldier. I requested him what he thought concerning the change in US coverage. His response in English was, ‘What the fuck.’”
In Washington, Kelly was requested if he had heard in Ukraine of assaults or incidents that will have been affected if Ukrainians had had entry to US intelligence.
“100%,” Kelly mentioned. “If there’s stuff they don’t get, that they want, that adjustments their means to defend in opposition to assaults. And people assaults occurred on Friday night time, on Saturday, once I was there.”
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Peace talks are attributable to resume in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, this time with Zelenskyy attending.
On Monday night time, Kelly spoke to MSNBC.
“After I was 22 years outdated,” he mentioned, “as I used to be getting sworn in to the USA navy, I swore an oath to guard and defend the structure. I’ve believed that oath my complete life. I flew in fight within the first Gulf struggle. I served in the USA navy for 25 years. I spent 15 years at Nasa, risking my life flying the area shuttle.”
Referring to Musk’s oversight of sweeping cuts to federal budgets and staffing, he added: “The one oath I can consider that perhaps Elon has sworn is an oath to his personal checking account, to his pocket ebook, an oath perhaps to ruining the lives of veterans.
“I had veterans in my workplace final week who, after actually good efficiency reviews, came upon that Elon Musk fired them for poor efficiency. He was ruining these folks’s lives … they didn’t need to get fired by an e mail from an unelected billionaire.”
The Vermont impartial senator Bernie Sanders was amongst these to rebuke Musk for his assault on Kelly, telling CNN: “It’s actually unspeakable. It truly is. I believe the American persons are sick and uninterested in the wealthiest man on this planet working the USA authorities and calling, on this case, a man who put his life on the road to defend us, a traitor. That’s past the pale.”
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