This week, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin was in the hot seat on the Hill, getting drilled by committee members over Israel.
After the hearing was over, Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) obliterated Democrats for cowering to Hamas supporters in Congress.
Talking Points…
- Austin confirms aid withheld
- Graham goes off on Democrats
- Analysis
This all got started when Austin visited the Hill this week to testify before committee. Now, Biden has been threatening to withhold aid to Israel, but to this point, Israel has not launched an offensive against Rafah, which is what Biden said would halt military aid. According to Austin, that pause has already happened. He testified:
“We did pause as we re-evaluated some of the security assistance that we’re providing.
“As we have assessed the situation, we paused one shipment of high-payload munitions.”
Graham was beside himself at the hearing, responding:
“If we stop weapons necessary to destroy the enemies of the state of Israel at a time of great peril, we will pay a price.
“This is obscene; it is absurd. Give Israel what they need to fight the war they can’t afford to lose – this is Hiroshima and Nagasaki on steroids.”
Senator Susan Collins (R-ME), someone who usually plays it safe, was also livid, adding:
“It was not the Israelis that started this conflict.
“And I’m very concerned that we not try to micromanage Israel’s right to defend itself against a terrorist group backed by Iran.”
Senator Graham offered more context on his opinion later in the day when he went on Fox News to discuss the days events. Graham ripped Democrats, saying that everyone but Fetterman was “afraid of the Hamas wing of the Democrat Party.” Graham continued:
“These people are not protesting to have a better life for the Palestinians, they are protesting to make sure we kill all the Jews. Guess what? Israel is not going to go down without a fight.
“Here is what I want people to understand: If Biden has in fact restricted weapons, put a hold on weapons to Israel to defend itself or withheld ammunition, that is a strategic mistake for the ages. It makes terrorists more likely to keep fighting. It puts Israel at a very big disadvantage. They’re under siege.”
Here is the segment from Fox News…
In my opinion, this all makes Biden weak, which is what I believe has led to the war in Ukraine and the initial attack by Hamas. Everyone keeps accusing Israel of killing innocent civilians, yet these are the same people that sit on their hands when Russia bombs an apartment building in Ukraine. All things considered, Israel has done an amazing job fighting Hamas to keep civilian casualties to a minimum, especially when you consider how Israel has received no help from Palestine to fight Hamas.
This may sound cold-hearted, but the reality of war is that civilians die, and they are often killed at a far higher rate than soldiers. When you look at historical numbers, Israel is on the low side, but we have members of Congress who are lumping in terrorist deaths with civilians to dramatize the death toll. This is not genocide… this is war, and there is a big difference.
