CNN stunned as MAGA senator squirms while defending Trump's pardon of drug trafficker

Just moments after championing the Trump administration for increasing hostilities with Venezuela over suspected drug trafficking, Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) squirmed in trying to defend the president’s pardon of convicted drug trafficker Juan Orlando Hernandez.

Appearing on CNN with Dana Bash, Mullin championed President Donald Trump for closing Venezuela’s air space, and condemned Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro for turning the South American country into a “terrorist country.” He also floated claims without evidence that Venezuela was now trafficking drugs into the United States by plane.

“It's Maduro that's doing this, we're not going to allow them to continue to use Venezuela as a terrorist country to ship in tons of drugs into the United States and continue to kill our brothers, our sisters, our friends and family on the streets!” Mullin said.

“Now, they're starting to fly [drugs] into the United States through [planes] that are being disguised as either commercial flights or private flights, and so the president has made it very clear, he's shutting down the air space!”

Bash pushed back on Mullin’s comments, largely over the contradiction of praising Trump for his harsh position on Venezuela over alleged drug trafficking amid the president’s recent pardon of Hernandez, the former president of Honduras.

“[Trump] is clearly very concerned about Central and South American presidents allegedly trafficking drugs into the United States, so if that's the case, why is he planning to pardon the former Honduran president who was convicted by an American jury of drug trafficking, who allegedly said according to testimony he would 'shove the drugs right up the noses of the gringos by flooding the United States with cocaine?'” Bash asked.

Mullin paused for a moment before deflecting to China, and how it was important to build relationships with South and Central American countries to combat its influence in the region.

“Well... the particular circumstances of that, I'm not quite aware of. However, I do know we're trying to build a relationship with Honduras, we're trying to build relationships throughout South American and Central America because China has greatly influenced those countries in a negative way,” Mullin said.

“I think by building new relationships and by allowing people to have a new beginning and showing good faith saying we're going to work with you as long as you work with us… I wasn't involved in the conversation that he had with the president of Honduras at the time, I believe there's probably a good faith that is being stretched forth here.”