Former Vice President Mike Pence sharply criticized President Joe Biden in an op-ed, saying his “weakness” in supporting Israel has driven further violence in the Israel-Hamas conflict.
“Instead of seeking peace through strength, he has invited violence through weakness,” Pence wrote in the National Review published on Monday. “Every tepid statement uttered by the Biden-Harris administration is built on a false equivalency between Israel and Hamas.”
“There is no moral equivalency between Israel and the terrorist group Hamas,” he added. “President Biden and every American leader should uphold Israel’s right to self-defense and condemn the terrorists of Hamas — as well as their supporters and apologists — in the strongest possible terms.”
Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, calling for an immediate end to violence between Israel and Hamas forces, which entered its second week of conflict.
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On Tuesday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi joined Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Biden’s calls for a ceasefire, noting in a statement that “Israel has a right to defend herself,” adding, “leaders must strive for peace through a negotiated two-state solution.”
Some Democrats such as Reps. Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar have condemned recent airstrikes by the Israeli military in the Gaza Strip that resulted in an estimated 200 Palestinian fatalities. Republicans and other defenders of Israel, such as the former vice president, say the strikes are a necessary retaliation for rocket barrage attacks carried out against the Jewish state by Hamas, a U.S.-designated terrorist organization.
On Sunday, Sen. Bernie Sanders said the United States should reconsider the nearly $4 billion in annual military aid to Israel, part of which helps to fund the Iron Dome defense system used to thwart rocket attacks from Hamas militants.
A day later, Biden approved the sale of $735 million worth of precision-guided weapons to Israel.
Pence’s op-ed gave credit to former President Donald Trump for the previous administration’s peace deals in the Middle East. He also claimed some of the Biden administration’s policies toward Israel had undone some of the peace negotiations, calling them a continuation of former President Barack Obama’s policies in the region.
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“He has replaced strength with weakness, moral clarity with confusion, and loyalty with betrayal,” Pence wrote. “Biden’s void, too, is being filled by America’s enemies — and Israelis are paying the price in blood.”
