The former Secretary of Defense under former President Barack Obama, Robert Gates, reportedly stated in a recent interview over the weekend that he sees the United States’ tremendous political divide as its worst threat.
Gates made the comments in an interview with “Face The Nation” anchor Margaret Brennan that aired on CBS on Sunday.
The remarks were made after the two talked about the debt ceiling and the difficulty of getting politicians in Washington, D.C. to compromise in order to find solutions to problems.
“I think it is the polarization in the country. We’ve always had polarization in America. If you go back to the Jefferson, Adams presidential race in 1800, the things that were said in that election would fit right into a current political environment. But what’s been different, more recently, is not just a measure of paralysis, as indicated by the debt ceiling, but a level of meanness and a lack of civility among our politicians, or the- the sense that somebody who disagrees with you is not just somebody you disagree with, but is an enemy, is a bad person.” Gates remarked.
“This lack of civility is I think, something new and- and really is pretty pervasive in the Congress. And it sets a pretty bad example for the rest of the country.” He continued.
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