“The View” co-host Ana Navarro said Daily Caller co-founder Tucker Carlson and former President Donald Trump should fly to Russia and return former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan to the U.S.
Navarro criticized the “right-wing” for suddenly being vocal about Russia’s detention of Whelan since 2018 on espionage charges. President Joe Biden’s administration exchanged Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, nicknamed “the Merchant of Death,” for WNBA player Brittney Griner in the midst of her 9-year sentence in Russia for allegedly attempting to leave the country with marijuana.
“It was a darn thing to watch really, that all of a sudden the right-wing, who had been silent on Paul Whelan for four years, all of a sudden came out,” Navarro said. “It was Donald Trump Jr., Donald Trump Sr., it’s Sean Hannity, it’s [Tucker] Carlson … All of these people have good relationships with Putin. Tucker Carlson is a celebrity in Russia. Donald Trump is a celebrity in Russia. He claims they’re very good friends. Guess what? They could do what Bill Richardson does, they could get on a plane now and they could go get Paul Whelan if they really care so much about Paul Whelan.”
Navarro then excused reports that Griner was released for being a tall, black lesbian, as Russia treated her worse due to her identity. She then announced her intention to tweet a link for people to send holiday cards to Whelan’s family. (RELATED: NBC News Quietly Scrubs Initial Detail On Brittney Griner To Back White House’s Version Of Events)
“And it really also irritated me how they tried to make it that so-called identity politics. Oh they’re doing this because progressive groups are pushing, because she’s black, because she’s gay,” Navarro said. “You know what? Because she’s black, because she’s gay, because she’s 7-feet tall, and they had her in a cage and they were treating her—”
“And because she’s American, don’t forget that part,” co-host Whoopi Goldberg interjected.
Whelan’s brother David previously expressed his family’s devastation that the government has yet to release the former U.S. Maine from Russian custody.
“Our family is still devastated,” Whelan’s brother, David, said in an emailed statement to CBS News. “I can’t even fathom how Paul will feel when he learns … his hopes had soared with the knowledge that the U.S. government was taking concrete steps for once toward his release.”
The White House has repeatedly said that the administration had the sole choice of releasing Griner or no American at all. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre emphasized the president’s priority to release Whelan.
“The professional athlete is also an American citizen, so let’s not forget that who deserved, and I’ve explained how the Russians have illegally treated, totally illegitimately, treated his situation,” she said Thursday. “I’ve been very clear on that, we’ve laid that out for you and again, the president felt that this was an opportunity to bring Brittney home. He is going to do everything he can to bring Paul Whelan home just like he did with Trevor Reed. Just like he was able to secure Trevor Reed’s release.”