U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), a ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has voiced his disapproval at a Senate Republican press conference regarding the Biden Administration’s decision to block arms sales for Israel.
Risch expressed his concerns in the following statement:
“The non-partisan weapons sales process has kept domestic political squabbles out of this for a long time. It’s been in place for about half a century, and it has worked really well. The administration has stepped outside those boundaries now without any notifications to us.”
He continued by outlining the current situation where Congress had approved funding and allowed these weapon sales, which he and three other members of Congress who monitor these sales also supported. However, amidst conflict, the administration is now retracting its support.
“This is unprecedented,” Risch stated. “It’s going to be watched by our enemies. It’s going to be watched by our allies. And it is not helpful to the national security of the United States.”
Risch further criticized the administration’s claim that they aim to reduce collateral damage when Israel goes into Rafah. He argued that by holding up kits that make bombs smart and precision bombs instead of dumb bombs, they are doing exactly the opposite of what they claim.
“Within two hours of the president’s announcement last night, Hamas said they were withdrawing from negotiations on hostages and on a ceasefire,” Risch noted. “What the president has done is handed a great victory to Hamas. It’s going to invigorate the fighting that they’re doing in Gaza. And it’s going to stop the negotiations that have been ongoing. This was a horrible mistake.”
The senator’s remarks have been lightly edited for clarity.
