CHARLOTTE — Republican US Senate candidate Michael Whatley says Camp Lejeune families impacted by contaminated water need to be taken care of. The comments came after President Donald Trump said in a rally earlier this week that funding for the families may depend on whether Republicans win the House and Senate this November.
“If we don’t win, there’s no money,” President Trump said in Fayetteville. “If we do win you’re getting it. It’s finally going to be over that nightmare you’ve been dealing with for years.”
“Do you agree with Trump’s position here?” Channel 9 Political Beat Host Joe Bruno asked Whatley.
“We need to take care of the families,” Whatley said. “We have almost 10% of all of the armed forces in the United States, Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and Coast Guard are based here and making sure we take care of them is obviously a priority.”
“Do you think he was serious when he said that?” Bruno asked.
“No, you know, look, the president he talks a lot about the campaign. He talks a lot about these types of issues,” Whatley said. “The key is that we’ve got to make sure that our military families are going to be taken care of and our veterans.”
Whatley said he supports the ongoing war in Iran. He said the war should end when Iran agrees to not build a nuclear weapon.
“When they agree that they are not going to develop and deploy nuclear weapons, that was the ultimate driver for the president to go in there,” he said.
“So, if I’m hearing you correctly, stay the course right now in Iran?” Bruno asked.
“We need to make absolutely sure that Iran does not develop and deploy nuclear weapons,” Whatley said.
Whatley also said when it comes to the waiving of Russian sanctions, President Trump is trying to achieve peace between Russia and Ukraine
“I think the president is doing everything he can to get both parties to the table and have peace negotiations,” he said. “That war would have never happened if President Trump was still in office.”
Michael Whatley is joining the Political Beat for an in depth interview on Sunday. You can watch at 12:30 pm and 11:30 pm on WSOC and 10:30 pm on TV64.
Channel 9 has been reaching out to Roy Cooper for a longform interview for several weeks.
Statement from a spokesperson for Roy Cooper:
“At every turn, Michael Whatley has cheered on the Iran war that has jacked up costs for hardworking people on everything from food to gas – all while personally profiting from his Big Oil stocks. This week, Whatley even refused to disagree with the president when he tried to extort veterans and their families for their votes. Roy Cooper is running to make stuff cost less and is the only candidate in this race with real plans to put the middle class back in reach for North Carolinians.”