Former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman. Image by getty images

Former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman is defending President Trump’s hot rhetoric against North Korea, saying that it might not be the worst thing to use martial words against the nuclear-armed totalitarian regime.

“I know that President Trump’s words were strong, but I’m not upset about them because we’ve tried for years and years, really decades, diplomatic language and a lot else with the North Koreans and it hasn’t worked,” the former vice presidential candidate said Wednesday on CNN.

Trump was criticized for telling reporters on Tuesday that any North Korean attack against the United States would be met with “fire and fury the kind of which has never been seen.” North Korea has developed ballistic missiles that might soon be able to shoot a nuclear warhead at an American city. North Korean media have made remarks about an attack on the American territory of Guam, an island in the Pacific Ocean.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis of the crisis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

Lieberman has a reputation as an foreign policy interventionist with an independent streak. He was a vocal supporter of the Iraq War, even after most of the Democratic Party had backed away from the conflict. He was briefly under consideration as a possible nominee to run the FBI after Trump fired director James Comey.

Contact Daniel J. Solomon at [email protected] or on Twitter @DanielJSolomon

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse..

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$36 $500

$120 $180 Other amount