CNN "Wolf" - Transcript: Interview With Sen. Roger Wicker

Interview

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BLITZER: That's what the president said last week.

Republican Senator Roger Wicker of Mississippi is a senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. He's joining us live from Capitol Hill.

Senator, thanks for joining us.

SEN. ROGER WICKER (R), MISSISSIPPI: Glad to be here.

BLITZER: All right, so the president didn't set a specific timeline for withdrawing from Syria last week. He simply said very soon. Does he need to rethink that thought, pulling out of the country, quote, very soon?

[13:10:05] WICKER: I think he's probably rethinking that now. And probably was before this attack.

The president should rely on his chairman of the Joint Chiefs. He should rely on Secretary Mattis. And, of course, this is quite a welcome for John Bolton, his first day on the office in the White House.

So he's got some very talented leadership around him. And I think if I were the president, if I -- if the president asked me for my advice, I would say, listen to the generals, listen to your top leadership and act accordingly. But I do believe in Syria we should be results-based and not slaves to a timeline.

BLITZER: Some leading Republicans, as you know, senator, they say the president's words actually embolden the Syrian leader, Bashar al- Assad. Listen to how, for example, the House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mac Thornberry, and Senator Lindsey Graham, a man you know well, listen to how they responded.

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BLITZER: So what's your reaction? Do you agree with him?

WICKER: Well, OK, I didn't hear Mac Thornberry say that the president's statement emboldened the Syrians into doing this chemical attack. So I would characterize his statement differently.

I think both of them make a valid point. I don't think the job is done in Syria and I think we ought to stay until we get the results we need.

BLITZER: Let's talk a little bit about what Senator John McCain, who's the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, what he said. He tweeted this, and I'll put it up on the screen. POTUS is -- president of the United States -- pledged to withdrawal from Syria has only emboldened Bashar al Assad, backed by Russian and Iran, to commit more war crimes in Douma. That's that suburban town where the poison gas is suspected to have occurred. He says the president should make Bashar al Assad, quote, pay a price for his brutality. Do you agree with Senator McCain?

WICKER: Well, I certainly agree with the second part of that. And, yes, John McCain is the one who really made a -- quite a statement that this emboldened the Syrians. But I will subscribe to the second part certainly of Senator McCain's statement. We need to make Bashar al Assad pay a price.

There are a number of options on the table. And, frankly, the -- you know, to the extent that we can ascertain what role the Russians had, I do think sanctions and strong measures are called for with President Putin also.

I'll tell you, Wolf, why -- I'll tell you why the Russians are saying this was a hoax. That's for domestic consumption. They know that no one in the U.N. Security Council believes that this is a hoax. This is for domestic consumption back in Russia. He's totally in charge of his media there and he can make people in his own homeland believe almost anything because he's the only one who gets to broadcast their side of the issue.

BLITZER: And the president, we just heard him say, it may have been the Syrian regime of Bashar al Assad. It may have been the Iranians. It maybe have been Putin and the Russians. Maybe all of them. He's raising that possibility.

What -- he says all options, senator --

WICKER: But the Russians -- the Russians are saying it didn't happen at all and, of course, that's absurd.

BLITZER: Well, obviously, if you -- if you --

WICKER: No one believes that except people in Moscow who are listening to only one TV station.

BLITZER: Yes, I suspect they don't even believe that.

But if you take a look at these pictures of these little children gasping and trying to be protected, these are horrific, horrific pictures that we're seeing. And it's clearly devastating.

WICKER: It's awful.

BLITZER: We're showing some of those video right now, those little kids being poisoned with this gas attack.

When he says all options are on the table, the president, what option would you like to see the U.S. commit?

WICKER: Well, I'm not the commander in chief. I'm not in that line of decision making. But I think he's correct not to rule anything out. That's been a -- that has been a process, that's been the position that presidents down through the decades have taken on both sides of the aisle, and I think the president's correct not to -- not to take any action off the table.

[13:15:04] BLITZER: Well, he says there is something that will happen over the next 24 to 48 hours. We shall see.

Senator Wicker, thanks so much for joining us.

WICKER: Thanks, Wolf.

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