GOP Congressman Crane warns party must go beyond managing 'decline of the country,' or US will fall

Arizona GOP Rep. Eli Crane says if his Republican Party doesn't fight harder against a politicized U.S. justice system, the country will become a lost cause. 

"We are in a drop-down, drag-out fight for this country," Crane said Thursday on the John Solomon Reports podcast. "If Republicans continue to try and act like gentlemen who are just managing the decline of this country-if they aren't willing to get down and fight, we're going to lose this country."

Crane called the recent indictment and arraignment of former President Donald Trump by a Democrat Manhattan prosecutor a disgrace. 

"I think it's disgraceful," he said. "I think many of us have seen the downward spiral of this country. It's the only reason I ever even ran for office. I never wanted to work in Washington, D.C. I never really wanted to be a congressman. But as a father, and somebody who loves this country, I felt like I had to try to do something about it."

Trump on Tuesday pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of falsifying business records and conspiracy related to his alleged role in hush money payments to two women, making him the first former president to ever face criminal charges. 

Crane argued that another thing to be concerned about is the possible collapse of the U.S. dollar which may be inevitable. 

Economics experts earlier this week cited concerns that the dollar's feeble valuation might be a "serious threat" to the United States' influence on the world stage.

"We've been watching some of the economics going on around the globe with the collapse of the U.S. dollar," he said.

"A lot of other countries that have worked with us in the past are now starting to shun the dollar and starting to use their own currency or another country's currency. I'm very concerned about that as well. Again, I think this is all avoidable. But you have to have solid leaders."