On Monday’s “CNN This Morning,” Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-MA) stated that it’s ridiculous to argue that Israel deserves blame for the recent spike in tensions in the Middle East because they took out terrorists “who had spent decades killing Israelis and Americans, and the world is safer because of it.”
Auchincloss said, “Since October, the president has been walking a tightrope in the Middle East. On one side, he doesn’t want to let terrorists win. We have to defend Israel and make sure that freedom and democracy can flourish in that region. On the other side, [we] don’t want an all-out war with Hezbollah, with Iran, with proxy terror forces in Iraq or Syria, trying to contain this onto one front. And that fundamental dynamic has not changed, although it’s gotten to be an even skinnier and more swaying tightrope in the last couple of weeks here. I think the United States is going to have to continue to be ironclad in its defense of Israel’s security. The idea that Israel [is] somehow culpable, right now, I think is absurd. Israel assassinated two terrorist masterminds who had spent decades killing Israelis and Americans, and the world is safer because of it. And now we need to work with Israel to ensure their security. We also need to put pressure on Israel to architect a day-of governance strategy in Gaza that is Palestinian-led, and that is consistent with Palestinian security and economic development so that we can get to a negotiated ceasefire and hostage release. That’s ultimately going to help cauterize this conflagration.”
Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett
