Pompeo defends Trump's Taliban invite while Democrats struggle to comprehend it
The Taliban won't be meeting with President Trump at Camp David, but the fact that it almost happened in the first place has evoked some heavy criticism.
Former Housing Secretary Julián Castro, a Democratic presidential candidate, said he's still looking for confirmation an actual meeting was planned, but if Trump was indeed telling the truth he finds it "bizarre." Castro said he's supportive of a negotiated political settlement in Afghanistan, but "it's very odd to invite a terrorist organization like that to Camp David," adding that it's "not in keeping with the way that the United States negotiates."
Castro's fellow Democratic presidential candidate Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) said the Camp David invite "is another example of the president treating foreign policy like some kind of game show," though, like Castro, she also supports taking a diplomatic approach when it comes to ending the war in Afghanistan.
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Trump does have his supporters, of course. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made the network rounds Sunday, telling CNN's Jake Tapper on State of the Union that the U.S. has "an obligation to do everything we can" when it comes to negotiations. However, he also noted that talks with the Taliban are dead for now and, if there are any hopes of reviving them, it will "take more than words" from the Taliban. Tim O'Donnell
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