GOP Rep. Perry knocks prisoner swap: ‘Like trading a rifle for a spoon’

Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.) criticized the recent prisoner swap with Russia in an interview Friday.

“We’re elated to have these prisoners returned back home, they should never been taken prisoner in the first place,” Perry said on Fox Business’s “Mornings With Maria.”

“But let’s remember that there’s another side to this equation,” he told host Maria Bartiromo. “Essentially, we’ve traded journalists for murderers and thieves, and it’s like trading a rifle for a spoon.”

On Thursday, the U.S. and Russia participated in a major prisoner swap that resulted in the release of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, Alsu Kurmasheva, Vladimir Kara-Murza, five Germans and seven Russians.

The swap also resulted in the release of Vadim Krasikov, who had been imprisoned in Germany for a 2019 murder, per The Associated Press.

“These people should have never been taken hostage and prisoner in the first place, but this just emboldens [Russian President] Vladimir Putin to continue to broker these kind of deals, and to take our people prisoner to get these kind of deals,” Perry said.

In a Thursday statement, President Biden said, “We celebrate the return of Paul, Evan, Alsu, and Vladimir and rejoice with their families.”

“We remember all those still wrongfully detained or held hostage around the world. And reaffirm our pledge to their families: We see you. We are with you. And we will never stop working to bring your loved ones home where they belong,” Biden continued.

In a Fox News interview Thursday, White House national security communications adviser John Kirby said, “Nobody’s delighted, or doing backflips over here because Mr. [Vadim] Krasikov is now a free man.”

“That’s what negotiations are all about,” Kirby continued. 

The Hill has reached out to the White House.