Dem senator calls on Trump to ‘immediately rescind’ Duterte invite

Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) says he is “deeply disturbed” that President Trump invited Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte to the White House, calling on Trump to “immediately rescind” the invitation.

“This is a man who has boasted publicly about killing his own citizens,” Cardin said of Duterte in a statement Monday, according to The Daily Beast.

“Ignoring human rights will not advance U.S. interests in the Philippines or any place else,” added Cardin, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “Just the opposite. The president should immediately rescind this invitation to the White House.”

{mosads}Cardin added he would introduce bipartisan legislation later this week aimed at showing Duterte “consequences for his barbaric actions.”

Trump reportedly invited Duterte to the White House during a call on Saturday.

Reports emerged Sunday that Trump extended the invitation without first consulting the State Department.

Duterte said Monday he could not “make any definite promise” about the trip due to his schedule.

“I am tied up,” he said. “I am supposed to go to Russia; I am supposed to go to Israel.”

More than 8,000 people have been killed since Duterte’s drug crackdown began eight months ago, according to Reuters.

Trump on Monday defended his invitation, arguing “the Philippines is very important to me strategically and militarily.”

“You know he’s very popular in the Philippines,” he told Bloomberg News. “He has a very high approval rating in the Philippines.”