McConnell: Withholding Aid From Israel Gives Terrorists Lifeline
‘The true obstacle to peace and stability for the people of Gaza is loudly identifying itself. Hamas is showing us precisely why it can play no part in the future of Israelis or Palestinians. And a true ally would give Israel the time, space, and support it needs to eliminate the terrorist threat. But that’s not what we’ve seen from the Commander-in-Chief.’
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) delivered the following remarks today on the Senate floor regarding Israel:
“I’d like to begin my remarks today with a quote:
“’The idea that we would cut off military aid to an ally – our only true, true ally in the entire region – is absolutely preposterous. It’s just beyond my comprehension why anyone would do that.’
“Five years ago, then-candidate Biden was saying the right thing about America’s commitment to the Jewish state of Israel.
“Unfortunately, today he’s doing the complete opposite.
“The President and his Administration are withholding critical military assistance from Israel as it fights to restore its security against savage terrorists. And they’re refusing to answer basic questions about it.
“Last week, the Speaker of the House and I sent a letter to the Biden Administration pressing for specific details on which weapons were being withheld and why they were being withheld.
“And while we waited for answers, the Secretary of State spent the weekend dodging requests for any serious rationale driving the President’s decision.
“Now, it’s no secret that the Administration is under immense pressure from the anti-Israel left. It’s evident in the words of some of our own colleagues.
“Members of this body have urged the President to, ‘be more aggressive with the Israelis’.
“They’ve demanded that, ‘not one penny’ go to support America’s ally unless Israel yields to their view of what’s acceptable in self-defense.
“And of course, they’ve even engaged in grotesque political interference, calling for regime change in a sovereign democracy.
“The Intelligence Committee is holding a hearing tomorrow about foreign interference in our own politics and elections.
“And yet too many of our Democratic colleagues can’t seem to resist the temptation to put their fingers on the electoral scales of other democracies.
“Far too many Washington Democrats have indulged what I’ve called ‘Bibi Derangement Syndrome’ – an absurd trope that’s setting a dangerous precedent.
“Some of our colleagues talk about an Israeli government dominated by shadowy far-right forces. This government literally does not exist.
“Israel is led by a coalition, national unity government. And its war cabinet, which includes members of multiple political parties, is distinguished by the absence of the most conservative members of the coalition.
“By all accounts, support for military operations in Gaza and against Hizballah in Lebanon transcends Israeli politics. But here in Washington, Democrats want to pretend that what they’re objecting to is merely the will of a Prime Minister they don’t like.
“Some of our most senior Senate colleagues, including the chairman of the State and Foreign Operations Subcommittee just this weekend, have even demonstrated an eagerness to assign political blame within Israel for the failure to prevent the October 7th attacks.
“Well that will be a job for the people of Israel. And it’ll come after they finish restoring their security against the terrorists wearing Israeli and American blood.
“But let’s make one thing absolutely clear: If the Biden Administration continues to hector and impede our ally’s progress toward this goal, a share of the blame for Hamas’ success may well come to rest here in Washington.
“Of course, there’s already plenty of blame to go around among the Western institutions that have fallen into predictable patterns of dangerous anti-Israel bias in the months after October 7th.
“From the media who rushed to fit the deadliest attack on Jews since the Holocaust into tidy, artificial narratives of moral equivalence and ‘cycles of violence’…
“To the prominent international organizations who continue to elevate and legitimize outright terrorist propaganda.
“Just a few days ago, the United Nations finally admitted that the figures on Palestinian casualties it had held up for months as objective truth had been grossly overstated.
“As a spokesman put it, ‘in the fog of war, it’s difficult to come up with numbers…’
“No kidding – it’s especially difficult to get accurate data when you rely exclusively on the word of Hamas!
“Unsurprisingly, just days after announcing its revised numbers, the U.N. backtracked yesterday and resumed taking the Hamas-run Ministry of Health in Gaza at its word.
“But remember, the U.N.’s affiliation to terrorists isn’t limited to data-gathering, is it? Employees of the U.N.’s Relief and Works Agency quite literally participated in the October 7th attacks!
“So why don’t we talk about the facts. In the last nine days, the terrorists controlling southern Gaza have attacked a major entry point for humanitarian aid from Israel six times.
“Six times – this is not an accident. And if terrorists strike the absurdly inefficient and costly floating pier, that won’t be an accident, either.
“The true obstacle to peace and stability for the people of Gaza is loudly identifying itself.
“Hamas is showing us precisely why it can play no part in the future of Israelis or Palestinians. And a true ally would give Israel the time, space, and support it needs to eliminate the terrorist threat.
“But that’s not what we’ve seen from the Commander-in-Chief. By limiting Israel’s options, the President is giving the terrorists a lifeline.
“Does the Biden Administration really expect Hamas to capitulate at a negotiating table when our conditions on Israel help terrorists survive on the battlefield?
“And does the President think exhausting an arsenal of expensive, low-inventory interceptors is changing Iran’s broader calculus?
“The lesson from repelling Iran’s direct drone and missile attacks on Israel or commercial shipping vessels isn’t that we can intercept them.
“The lesson is that we still haven’t managed to compel Iran to stop.
“And that we ought to be doing much more to rebuild our stocks and capacity to produce air and missile defenses as well as the long-range weapons that can credibly threaten what Iran and other adversaries hold dear.
“This isn’t new criticism, and it isn’t a new problem.
“An emboldened Iran, an unchecked network of proxies, and brazen violence against Israel, America, and the global economy: the President’s choices have magnified these threats. He’s invited them with retreat, with hesitation, and with appeasement.
“Today, the United States has effectively allowed itself to be deterred by a second-rate terrorist power.
“And the world is taking note. Our credibility is not divisible. Our failure to meet one challenge compounds the others we face.
“But the path forward is not a mystery. As I’ve said repeatedly:
“Rebuild our military power. Stand with our allies. Deter our adversaries. And do it today.”
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Related Issues: Israel, Iran
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