CnsnewsAug 19, 2021
Marine Veteran and Fox News contributor Johnny "Joey" Jones.
Fox News contributor Johnny "Joey" Jones, a Marine veteran of combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, said that when it comes to fighting the Taliban, "we should have killed every one of them," and added that, "if we’ve learned anything, it’s take no prisoners on the battlefield."
Jones, who lost both his legs in an IED explosion in Afghanistan, made his remarks on The Faulkner Focus . Commenting on the brutality of the Taliban, host Harris Faulkner said "Biden should be so familiar with who he’s dealing with here.”
Jones replied, “Yes, we should have killed every one of them. If we’ve learned anything, it’s take no prisoners on the battlefield. If they have a gun in their hand, put a bullet in their chest. That’s what we’ve learned."
"If we’re not going to be allowed to gather human intelligence, because that process is considered torture now, so what’s the point of bringing any of them in?" he added.
Jones then criticized President Barack Obama's decision to exchange five Taliban members -- sitting in prison in Guantanamo Bay -- for U.S. soldier Bowe Bergdahl. Bergdahl was court-martialed in 2017 for desertion and misbehavior before the enemy; he pleaded guilty, was demoted in rank to private, and was dishonorably discharged.
Deserter Bowe Bergdahl and the five Taliban soldiers who were exchanged for his release by President Barack Obama in 2014. One of those radical Islamists, Khairullah Khairkhwa, is now a leader in the takeover of Afghanistan. (Screenshot)
Concerning Taliban prisoners, Jones said, “All they’re going to do is get fat, become martyrs for everyone on the ground, and then we’re going to release them back so they can stir them up and take over Afghanistan. That’s exactly what’s happened."
"We traded five [Taliban] leaders, five people with tons of blood on their hands, for a traitor who [allegedly] got other Americans killed," said Jones. "And the Obama administration passed it off as a victory. They wanted us to celebrate it, they were surprised that we didn’t have a ticker-tape parade. They were completely befuddled that we didn’t celebrate it from one coast to the other."
President Barack Obama with the parents of deserter Bowe Bergdahl at the White House, May 31, 2014. (Getty Images)
“It’s a religious thing for them [Taliban], it’s all or nothing for them," said Jones. "These aren’t just people who we release – in their mind, God set them free. Their God came through for them in a righteous cause."
"So the impact of these five [released Taliban] is much greater than us bringing home any POW, whether it be Marcus Luttrell or a traitor like Bo Bergdahl," said Jones. "And we sit here and we wonder why we can’t win this war. Because we’re not willing to. We haven’t been willing to in a long time."
Jones continued, “At some point we have to fight a war, which means kill the enemy, which means why did the Obama administration care more about the living conditions and the health of people living in Guantanamo Bay than maybe Vets sitting in an Arizona VA? I’d love to have an answer to that."
“This isn’t partisan for me," he added. "This is 330 million Americans against a ruling class in Washington, D.C., and a bunch of generals that care more about building their careers than in winning the war. And I’m tired of it, and we deserve better."
