Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) took aim at President Biden’s stance on Israel on Sunday, criticizing him for the administration’s stance on Rafah and his decision to halt some military deployments to the country.
Cotton defended Israel’s actions in Rafah, which set the stage for a potential full-scale invasion of the city – where more than 1 million people have moved to seek refuge. He said on CBS’s “Face the Nation” that Israel needs to go to Rafah to destroy the militant group Hamas.
“Joe Biden’s position is in fact in favor of Hamas’ victory at this moment. Israel’s goal is to destroy Hamas, which committed the worst atrocity against Jews since World War II. Hamas’ goal is to survive. … If Israel does not enter Rafah and destroy Hamas in Rafah, Hamas will survive,” Cotton said.
The Biden administration has repeatedly warned against an invasion of Rafah without presenting a plan to protect civilians. Israel moved into Rafah and occupied a border crossing for humanitarian aid last week, but has not yet launched a wider operation.
Biden warned last week that the US would stop sending offensive weapons to Israel if it invaded Rafah. The Biden administration said last week it would delay sending certain bombs to Israel amid an imminent invasion.
Biden came under fire from both sides of the aisle after his decision to pause a shipment. Cotton protested the decision to delay some shipments to Israel, labeling it a “de facto arms embargo” on Israel, prompting CBS host Margaret Brennan to backtrack.
“You know, $26 billion in emergency funding was just approved by the president. And there is no arms embargo on Israel, and there is no blockade on sharing information with Israel. You know that,” she told him.
Cotton also discussed Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s comments on “Face the Nation,” in which Blinken said it is “reasonable to assess that, in a number of cases, Israel has not acted in a manner consistent with international humanitarian law.”
“No, it doesn’t make any sense, Margaret, it sounds like a bunch of evasive, foul-mouthed politics,” said Cotton. “He said it’s a ‘reasonable assessment’, he said it three or four times, it’s like he was trained to say it, like it was some magical talisman to help them walk the political line they want among the wing. pro-Hamas 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.
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