A Republican and a Democratic lawmaker, speaking to MSNBC on Thursday, put forth opposing views on whether the strong U. S. rhetoric on North Korea is irresponsible or useful.



"First they have to stop the reckless, dangerous, scary language which they are using," said Democratic Senator Ed Markey, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.





"When Secretary Mattis says that if North Korea doesn't stop . . . it could lead to the destruction of its people, it could lead to regime change - that's exactly what they're most concerned about and will most likely lead to them continuing to test nuclear weapons and ICBM capacity. "





Republican Representative Peter King said in a separate interview with MSNBC that Trump's "fire and fury" statement was aimed primarily at China and meant to get Beijing re-engaged in the efforts against the North Korean threat.



