Khanna: ‘There’s no support in the Democratic Congress for regime change’

Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) on Sunday sought to clarify President Biden’s recent off-the-cuff remarks concerning Russian President Vladimir Putin remaining in power, stating that there was no policy for regime change among congressional Democrats.

On Saturday, Biden gave a speech in Warsaw, Poland in which he said Putin “cannot remain in power.” This comment drew widespread international attention, with observers wondering if Biden was calling for a regime change. The White House quickly walked back Biden’s remark, saying the president meant that Putin should not have power over countries outside of Russia.

Appearing on “Fox News Sunday,” Khanna said the president was likely “frustrated” after meeting with refugees who fled Ukraine.

“Look, when Putin in Mariupol is bombing theatres with 300 kids there, where there’s a sign saying ‘children’ and he’s bombing that, any human being would express frustration,” Khanna said. “And the president was speaking from his heart, but it’s not the U.S. policy to seek regime change.”

“Fox News Sunday” host John Roberts noted that Biden has a “propensity to sometimes say the quiet part out loud.” 

“The president, I think, is a straight shooter. He’s deeply empathetic. I’m sure he’s so frustrated with these scenes of children, women being killed,” Khanna said.

“It’s not the policy of regime change — there’s no support in the Democratic Congress for regime change. We’ve been the party against regime change for the past 20 years.”