Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) criticized President Biden’s stance on Israel, particularly the administration’s decision to pause some military shipments to the country and its position on Rafah.
Cotton supported Israel’s actions in Rafah, which have prepared the way for a potential complete invasion into the city, where over 1 million people had relocated for safety. He explained on CBS’s “Face the Nation” that Israel must enter Rafah to eliminate militant group Hamas.
“Joe Biden’s position is essentially promoting Hamas victory at this moment. Israel’s objective is to eliminate Hamas, which has committed the most terrible crime against Jews since World War II. Hamas’s aim is to survive. … If Israel does not enter Rafah and eliminate Hamas there, Hamas will survive,” Cotton said.
The Biden administration has repeatedly cautioned against an invasion of Rafah without presenting a plan to protect civilians. Israel entered Rafah and took control of a border crossing for humanitarian aid last week but has not yet initiated a broader operation.
Last week, Biden cautioned that the U.S. would halt the delivery of offensive weapons to Israel if it invades Rafah. The Biden administration stated last week it would be postponing the delivery of certain bombs to Israel in the face of an impending invasion.
Biden faced criticism from both sides of the political spectrum after the decision to delay some shipments to Israel. Cotton strongly criticized the decision to delay some shipments to Israel, calling it a “basically an arms embargo” on Israel, which prompted CBS host Margaret Brennan to disagree.
“You know, $26 billion in emergency funding was just approved by the president. And there is not an arms embargo on Israel, and there is not a block on intelligence sharing with Israel. You know that,” she told him.
Cotton also talked about Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s remarks on “Face the Nation,” where Blinken said it is “reasonable to assess that in a number of instances, Israel has not acted in a manner that’s consistent with international humanitarian law.”
“No, it doesn’t make any sense at all, Margaret, it sounds like a bunch of weaselly, mealy-mouthed politics,” Cotton said. “He said it’s ‘reasonable to assess,’ he said that like three or four times, it’s like he was coached to say that, as if it was some magic talisman to help them walk the political line they want between the pro-Hamas wing of their party and the vast pro-Israel majority of the American people.”
Blinken was referring to a recent State Department review, which raised “serious concerns” about Israel’s actions in Gaza.
The Hill has reached out to the White House for comment.
