Michael McCaul Quotes

I am somebody who respects Putin highly, but I'm not somebody who is against America.

I've stood up to Russia. I've taken on Putin and others, and I would do that as president.

With regards to the expansion of NATO, I see it as a mistake, even a provocation in a way.

President Obama hasn't been elected by the American people in order to be pleasant to Russia.

It's almost as if Putin is brilliant, really - he's outfoxing Obama all the time.

In my view, Russia has not been a particularly collaborative player on the world stage.

I'm not a big fan of Putin. I'm not a big fan of Russia.

In the end, believe me, there will be no friendship between Trump and Putin.

Putin is very - not the smartest guy in the world.

So [Vladimir] Putin is a mess. He's committed all sort of murderous thuggery, and I am opposed to the way Putin conducts himself in world affairs, and I hope that the president also wants to show moral leadership about this issue.

I do not believe that Putin intends to leave office in a Cold War atmosphere with the United States.

Wishful thinking won't make the Palestinians an Israeli peace partner, no matter how much President Barack Obama pressures Israel to make concessions; caustically mocking Putin's worldview won't make it any less real or mitigate the Russian threat.

So with the end of the Cold War, it became increasingly obvious that there was no basis upon which any decision was being made, not in the White House, and certainly because of that, not in the Congress.

The Vietnam War required us to emphasize the national interest rather than abstract principles. What President Nixon and I tried to do was unnatural. And that is why we didn't make it.

It's essential for the U.S. and Europe to prevent Putin from going farther and reversing the hard-won independence of former Soviet republics.

Taking into consideration that we are involved in Russia's orbit, any coughing there will produce painful economic and political convulsions here.

There will no longer be need for spheres of influence, for alliances, balances of power ...

Dr. Kissinger is a man you can talk to.

If Russia and the United States approach each other in starkly adversarial terms, the conflict will badly warp the foreign policy of both countries ...

The United States must look beyond Mr. Putin. His regime may appear imposing, but it is rotting inside. His Russia is not a great power on par with America. It is a gas station run by a corrupt, autocratic regime.

Russia is not a friendly character on the world stage.

I believe that Trump is a danger. I believe that he wants to tighten and build up his relationship to Russia for whatever reasons.

Trump very much wants to be liked by Putin and I think sincerely admires him. Putin doesn't know how to deal with somebody who positions himself like that.

But I would not refuse a meeting with Putin. I would like to spend a week with Putin, so that I could better understand him.

A person that's going to be super, super tough on Russia is President Donald J. Trump.