President Must Convey Support To Israel, Credible Deterrence To Iran
‘In our grief and in our anger, America’s interests and Israel’s interests are intertwined. And our policies must be as well. President Biden needs to demonstrate our support for the difficult but necessary steps Israel must take to destroy the terrorists’ capacity to wage war.’
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) delivered the following remarks today on the Senate floor regarding President Biden’s trip to Israel:
“I was encouraged to hear that President Biden will visit Israel tomorrow.
“As the Jewish State mourns the victims of the barbaric October 7th attacks, and as Israeli forces continue their work to root out the terrorists responsible, it is important for the President to represent Israel’s closest ally and bear witness to the destruction wrought by Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and their patrons in Tehran.
“The President will have a number of responsibilities on this consequential trip.
“First, he needs to console a grieving nation while demonstrating America’s firm resolve to back Israel in its time of need.
“The American people feel the pain of our friends in Israel. And we mourn our own citizens who were slaughtered alongside Israelis by these savages.
“In our grief and in our anger, America’s interests and Israel’s interests are intertwined. And our policies must be as well.
“President Biden needs to demonstrate our support for the difficult but necessary steps Israel must take to destroy the terrorists’ capacity to wage war.
“He needs to reject the false moral equivalence that Israel’s perennial critics are using to mask anti-Semitic hatred.
“He needs to resist the already mounting pressure in the media and in diplomatic channels to constrain Israel’s efforts to defend itself.
“He needs to make it clear that his Administration will do everything possible to give Israel the time and space to conduct the required military operations, for as long as it takes.
“In his words and actions, President Biden must also deter Iran and Hezbollah from further additional involvement in this terrorist war. The deployment of carrier battle groups, a Marine Expeditionary Unit, and additional fighter squadrons to the region are a good first step.
“But deterrence requires both capabilities and credibility. The President needs to show that he means business.
“His tone, his statements, and his actions need to send an unambiguous message to Iran about America’s resolve.
“No more splitting hairs about whether intelligence demonstrates Iran’s direct involvement in the October 7th attacks.
“The Supreme Leader has rejoiced at the images of dead Israelis.
“A senior Iranian official called it ‘a proud operation.’
“And Hamas has a history of thanking Iran for its support in public!
“No more absurd suggestions that seeking to free up $6 billion in Iranian assets doesn’t embolden Tehran. We have reams of evidence that the regime that chants ‘Death to America’ and ‘Death to Israel’ puts its money where its mouth is.
“Ultimately, President Biden must also accept that the fundamental assumptions of his Administration’s Iran policy were morally and practically bankrupt.
“The President’s team begged Iran to re-enter the Obama Administration’s flawed nuclear deal. Iran sensed their desperation and played hard to get.
“Then, the Administration sought to de-escalate tensions by overlooking Iranian plots against American citizens and former officials and ignoring Tehran’s growing repression at home and aggression abroad.
“Well, Iran had other ideas. They like killing Americans as much as they like killing Israelis.
“After all, the way Tehran sees it, America is the Great Satan to Israel’s Little Satan. And we should expect that until Iran’s rulers are afraid of us, they will continue to undermine America’s influence, to test our boundaries, to kill our citizens.
“The Biden Administration’s previous Iran policy is now history. The President must go back to the drawing board.
“He should start by doing what I’ve recommended to him since he took office: Work with Republicans to craft a bipartisan Iran policy that will survive his Administration. A plan that addresses all aspects of the threat Iran poses.
“And more immediately, the President needs to show Iran and its terrorist proxies like Hizballah that further involvement in this conflict will risk crippling economic sanctions and the decisive use of American military strength.
“The terrorists and their sponsors with Israeli and American blood on their hands represent a clear and present danger to the United States, our allies, and our interests.
“It is long past time for America meet this threat with serious and credible deterrence.”
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Related Issues: Iran Nuclear Deal, Iran, Israel, National Security
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