Transcript: Ret. Gen. Stanley McChrystal on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan," Sept. 29, 2024

The following is a transcript of an interview with Retired Army General Stanley McChrystal on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" that aired on Sept. 29, 2024.

ROBERT COSTA: We are back with retired Army General Stanley McChrystal. He did endorse Vice President Kamala Harris last week, and is appearing today on Face The Nation as a Harris campaign surrogate. Good morning, General. We appreciate your time. General McChrystal, you just heard from Senator Tom Cotton here on Face The Nation. He said, the United States when it comes to dealing with Israel in its- its battle against Hezbollah should not de-escalate. Should take Hezbollah to the mat. Do you believe that's the right course for the United States in the days and weeks ahead? 

GENERAL STANLEY MCCHRYSTAL: Well, I spent a long time in counterterrorism, we killed a lot of people, and what I learned was, unless you have an outcome, a political outcome that is durable, that all of those kinds of activities don't last. So, I would urge both sides, Israel and Hezbollah, to take a look at the far ridge line. I know that's hard to do, because once you've shed this much blood, the emotion runs deep. You kill people's parents and children and brothers and sisters on both sides. And so I think that where we are now is just spiraling. The violence is unlikely to produce a good outcome. And yet, I can sympathize with both sides, the visceral desire to go after the other.

ROBERT COSTA: What's your assessment of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, how he's handling this moment and his strategy?

GENERAL STANLEY MCCHRYSTAL: Well, I think he's got a strategy to try to push Iran into a corner, and he may be doing that, but the long term outcome in Palestine writ large is going to be from a statesman like view. And so if he's taking a wartime view only, I think at some point he's either going to have to widen that aperture or take a longer view of it. 

ROBERT COSTA: You believe the Israelis and Prime Minister Netanyahu pushing Iran into a corner, as you put it, does that mean war with Iran, between Israel and Iran is on the horizon, potentially, and what does that mean for the United States if true?

GENERAL STANLEY MCCHRYSTAL: I think anything's potential on the horizon, but, but I don't know.

ROBERT COSTA: What are you watching now, though, to see if this- this action with Hezbollah assassinating Nasrallah escalates into something far wider in the region. What are you watching? What are the key points?

GENERAL STANLEY MCCHRYSTAL: Well, I think the key thing is, the more you press the fight, the harder you go for the juggler, the more you create scar tissue that's going to last for generations, and that's a factor.

ROBERT COSTA: You endorsed vice president Kamala Harris this week. You endorsed President Biden in 2020 in your op ed in the New York Times, you talk about character. What is it about her character versus former President Trump that so convinced you to take this public stand and endorse her?

GENERAL STANLEY MCCHRYSTAL: I think character is what a person does when they're under pressure. It is a combination of their deep seated beliefs, the things their core values, and the discipline they have to execute those to live up to them. So I think when we look at Kamala Harris, we look at her history, she came up as a prosecutor, an attorney general, into the Senate. She has lived a number of experiences that I think builded someone the kind of character that's going to be necessary in the presidency. But let's be sure, we don't elect a president based on policies. We shouldn't. We should elect them for the character, because we don't know what's going to come up. We didn't know that one term Congressman Abraham Lincoln was going to be able to lead the United States through the Civil War. We never knew that the clothing salesman Harry Truman was going to be able to make the decision to drop the atomic bomb or to deal with the crisis in Korea. Those things come into a presidency in a way that tests the metal and the character of the person in that office.

ROBERT COSTA: The presidency certainly tests, and it can forge leadership over time. But what convinces you now, ahead of a possible presidency, that she's ready, especially on national security and foreign policy areas you know well? 

GENERAL STANLEY MCCHRYSTAL: What do we know about anyone before the job like that? Young President Kennedy, when he was elected, was a young senator, he did pretty well. He struggled first through the Bay of Pigs, then did pretty well in the Cuban Missile crisis. Donald Trump had no background in it. What we've seen from Kamala Harris convinces me she has the strength, she has the values to deal with the uncertain crises that're inevitable.

ROBERT COSTA: What's your view of how she and President Biden handled the withdrawal from Afghanistan?

GENERAL STANLEY MCCHRYSTAL: Afghanistan is difficult. There was 20 years of American involvement in Afghanistan, and a lot of the bricks were put in place. In the direction that that went. There had been a decision made with the Doha courts in the previous administration that the Biden administration had to make a decision to deal with. I didn't like the outcome in Afghanistan. I put a lot of my life there. And the young Americans who gave so much of themselves, I don't think did it in vain. I think they did it in a worthy effort that made Afghanistan a better place. But things don't always turn out like we hope they will.

ROBERT COSTA: You wrote in your op ed that it's mostly about character, but you connected in your piece character to policy, especially on America's role in the world. Do you believe that Vice President Harris is, in a sense, a continuation of President Biden's foreign policy and embrace of Western institutions like NATO, traditional American alliances, is that one of the driving factors of your endorsement, more than just her personal character?

GENERAL STANLEY MCCHRYSTAL: I think Vice President Harris's character is going to drive policies based upon values, but very common sense values. She's a practical person, and I think that that will come out.

ROBERT COSTA: But there's a real debate in this country about America's role in the world. Trump, the former president, constantly talks about America first, has skepticism toward how NATO functions in some respects. Do you worry that if Trump wins another term of the presidency, that America's role in the world would change in a fundamental way? 

GENERAL STANLEY MCCHRYSTAL: I think America's role in the world is critical. Take, for example, the war in Ukraine. You can make an argument that Ukraine is not a strategic national interest for the United States. I cannot accept an argument that Europe is not. And yet, if Ukraine falls to Russian aggression, even a significant part of it, the Baltic States and our NATO Alliance is going to be increasingly threatened, and, I would argue, weakened, and I think long term, that's much against our interest. 

ROBERT COSTA: Is it credible that, as Trump says, that he could cut a deal to end the war in Ukraine?

GENERAL STANLEY MCCHRYSTAL: I would doubt that. But if he said, If he has a deal– 

ROBERT COSTA: He doesn't talk about details, as we just discussed with Senator Cotton, but he's claiming he can, he can cut a deal. Would Vice President Harris, you think, be able to end the war between Russia and Ukraine? 

GENERAL STANLEY MCCHRYSTAL: I think it's going to be difficult to end this war. I personally think we need to support Ukraine as strong as we can, so that their sovereignty is protected as we come out.

ROBERT COSTA: So many former military officials, top leaders who have served men and women in uniform, have come out against former President Donald Trump. There are those, of course, like former retired General Keith Kellogg, who do support former President Trump, but high profile people like yourself have raised concerns. I think about General Milley. I think about- General Milley had concerns in the final days of Trump's presidency about how he was handling his work. And you have concerns. You have endorsed Vice President Harris. It comes down to one core question here, General McChrystal, do you believe former President Donald Trump is fit for office?

GENERAL STANLEY MCCHRYSTAL: I believe that Vice President Harris is fit to lead the country in the presidency–

[CROSSTALK]

ROBERT COSTA: Well let's go right to the question of Trump, is he fit for office or not? You're a former top leader of the United States military. You're supporting a presidential candidate. You have a former president now running for the presidency again. You seem to have core character. Questions, is he fit for office or not?

GENERAL STANLEY MCCHRYSTAL: Okay, Bob, let's be honest. Why would a retired military officer come on to endorse his opponent? You tell me, because I think character is very important, and so I'm voting for character. I'm voting for Kamala Harris.

ROBERT COSTA: General Stanley McChrystal. We appreciate you stopping by Face the Nation and sharing your views. Thank you very much, and we'll be right back with a lot more. Face the Nation. Stay with us.