Arizona GOP Senator and 2008 Presidential candidate John McCain slammed it to GOP Kentucky Senator Rand Paul for his failure to support the inclusion of Montenegro as a member of NATO. The two senators, who both are former Presidential candidates, have had an increasingly sour relationship over the last few months in the aftermath of the campaign victory of Donald Trump in November 2016. Paul recently stated that Americans are "lucky" that John McCain is not President because, as he sees it, McCain would be involving America in multiple, major wars if he were President.
Where is Montenegro?
Montenegro is a beautiful, rugged and mountainous country that is one of the Baltic States. It is located in Southeastern Europe. Montenegro is along the Adriatic Sea to the southwest, and is bordered by Croatia and is also near Bosnia and Herzegovina. Montenegro has a distinctly upper middle class demographic and vibrant economy. The quaint nation has membership in the United Nations, (UN), The Council of Europe and the Central European Free Trade Agreement. Montenegro recently applied for membership in NATO as its 29th member nation. It is the bill calling for America's endorsement of Montenegro's inclusion in NATO to which Paul is objecting in the United States Senate.
Why Paul said 'No'
The crux of Rand Paul's argument against allowing Montenegro to join NATO is that, as he sees it, the United States already is over-extended in its obligations to support the nations that currently are members of NATO. Paul brought up the financial commitments that the United States already has made to NATO.
The Kentucky Senator expressed his belief that America's $20 trillion debt and obligations to the 28 nations that already are in NATO have burdened the country enough.
McCain's accusations against Paul
McCain, on the other hand, has a distinctly different view of Montenegro's petition to join NATO. As McCain sees it, anyone who opposes Montenegro's inclusion in NATO is “carrying out the desires and ambitions of Vladimir Putin, and I do not say that lightly," (Huffington Post, 3/15/2017).
In 2016, the charming Baltic nation barely survived a coup attempt for which Putin was blamed.
Pelosi calls upon Ryan to depose Steve King
McCain and Paul are not the only members of Congress who are having difficulties. Earlier this week, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi called for Paul Ryan to remove Iowa GOP Congressman Steve King as the Chairman of the Constitution Committee of the House. Pelosi made her recommendation after King made comments to the effect that he wants to have a ""homogenous" America in which "we look a lot the same," (Huffington Post, 3/15/17).
