Trump ally Dan Crenshaw: Europe needs to boost its defense or 'shut up'

The French president and British prime minister have been to the White House to urge President Donald Trump not to abandon Kyiv as negotiations with Russia loom. Trump's attacks on Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and his administration's approach to the Western alliance have caused consternation among European capitals.

This week, host Anne McElvoy talks to Dan Crenshaw, a Republican congressman representing the Second Congressional District in Texas and an ally of President Trump. A former Navy SEAL, Crenshaw served in Iraq and Afghanistan, where he lost an eye to a bomb blast in the province of Helmand. He was in London to attend the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship conference, where right-wing thinkers from Europe and the U.S. gathered.

They discuss Trump's position on Ukraine, Russia and the Western alliance as well as transgender rights in the U.S. military. Crenshaw argues that Europe needs to mount a more aggressive defense posture or "shut up" about the need for American support.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices