Rosen Touts 'Mutually Beneficial' US-Israel Alliance, Urges No Vote On Bill To Block Arms Sales

6 days ago

During remarks on the Senate floor Thursday, Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) called on her Democratic colleagues to vote against resolutions blocking the sale of certain weapon systems to Israel.

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Transcript

00:00Thank you, Mr. President.

00:04Since October 7th, when Hamas launched the deadliest terrorist attack in Israel's history,

00:12Israel has continued to face a barrage of threats from Iran and its terrorist proxies

00:17in the region.

00:20The attacks on Israel, they didn't just happen on October 7th.

00:25That's when it started.

00:28Resolutions we're debating today will hurt Israel's ability to defend itself against

00:32these attacks.

00:34These resolutions would block weapons that are critical to restocking Israel's defenses

00:41and deterring Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and others.

00:47Just this weekend, the Houthis launched a ballistic missile attack on Israel.

00:54If it passed, these resolutions would embolden more attacks like these from Iran and, again,

01:02its terrorist proxies.

01:03It would send a disastrous statement to the world, emboldening terrorism and potentially

01:08prolonging wars in the region.

01:12Now, I know some on my side of the aisle are considering supporting these resolutions because

01:18they may disagree with the current Israeli government.

01:23But let's be clear.

01:26Support for the U.S.-Israel relationship is not an endorsement of all the actions of any

01:32one Israeli government.

01:35In the same way that other nations' support for America does not equal an endorsement

01:40of all the actions, well, by the Trump administration.

01:44So I urge my colleagues to stand with and stand for our historic and mutually beneficial

01:52relationship with Israel and the Israeli people.

01:57As the only democracy in the Middle East, Israel has been our strongest ally in the

02:02region, and the passage of these resolutions, well, would damage our bond for years to come.

02:11Government leaders, politicians, well, they come and go, but our commitment to Israel's

02:17security must be ironclad.

02:21Restricting much-needed arms to Israel because you don't agree with everything the current

02:26government is doing will leave our ally vulnerable, just not only to current threats of terrorism

02:35but to future threats of terrorism.

02:40And while Israel has an absolute right to defend itself and the aid provided by Israel

02:46is critical to its defense, I do share the concerns of many of my colleagues about the

02:52need to limit civilian casualties during these conflicts.

02:57It's an important reason why I oppose these resolutions.

03:02The Joint Direct Attack Munitions, or JDAMs, the very same guidance kits that would be

03:08restricted by one of these resolutions, would actually help convert unguided dumb bombs

03:14into more accurate ones.

03:17These save civilian lives by enabling the Israeli Air Force to hit military targets

03:23more precisely than they would without the JDAMs.

03:28By providing Israel with JDAMs, which make weapons more precise and more accurate, we

03:33are helping Israel to defend itself while also working to minimize civilian casualties.

03:41The munitions these resolutions would block, well, they're also critical because Israel

03:47continues to face threats from both above and below the ground.

03:52For this reason, it's essential that Israel be able to reach all their military targets,

03:57including reinforced concrete structures like terror tunnels, weapons depots, factories,

04:04and rocket missile sites.

04:08These resolutions would undermine these capabilities.

04:16I know many of you here are torn.

04:19You want to do what's right for Israel, the United States, and the region.

04:24And I believe that we all share a goal of ending the war between Hamas and Israel.

04:31And we all look forward to a future without hostilities, where the hostages taken by Hamas

04:36are finally all freed.

04:40Right now, 59 hostages, only about half of whom are still believed to be alive, including

04:52a living American hostage, they still are in Hamas captivity.

04:59They are still in Hamas captivity.

05:04And I think we can all agree that freeing all of these hostages is a fundamental piece

05:09to ending the war, passing these resolutions that threaten that goal.

05:18We've seen Hamas harden their stances on negotiations when they perceive gaps between the U.S. and

05:24Israel.

05:26And after almost 550 days, 550 days, the hostages cannot afford to have Hamas delay

05:38one day longer.

05:44So to best ensure the safety and security of Israel and the Palestinian people, to end

05:50civilian casualties on both sides, and to ensure we never, ever have another October

05:577th again, Hamas cannot be allowed to remain in power in Gaza in any capacity.

06:07I still hold hope for a future where two states live side by side in peace, a future that's

06:15free from Hamas, which has devastated countless lives in the regions, both Israelis and Palestinians.

06:24And the key component of making this a reality is to make sure that Israel maintains its

06:30qualitative military edge to push Hamas out of Gaza for good.

06:40Passing these resolutions would do the opposite.

06:44It would allow Hamas to entrench even further in Gaza, believing Israel's stockpiles are

06:49decimated, allowing them to expand their foothold, emboldening their current and future assault

06:54on Israelis and oppression of the Palestinians.

06:59Blocking these arms sales will hurt Israel.

07:04It will send the wrong message to Hamas, to Iran, and to all of its terrorist proxies

07:09that America is abandoning our ally.

07:15So I want to be clear, I want to repeat this.

07:18The message to terrorists, if these bills are passed, the message to terrorists will

07:25be that they can continue without impunity.

07:34If we're serious about preventing another atrocity like October 7th, if we're serious

07:41about limiting civilian casualties, if we're serious about ensuring that Israel can defend

07:48itself, if we're serious about sending a message to terrorists around the globe, if we're serious

07:56about a stable path forward, and if we're serious about stability in the region and

08:03a safe and secure state of Israel, someday living alongside a peaceful, independent Palestinian

08:13state, I urge all my colleagues to vote no on these resolutions.

08:23I yield the floor.

Rosen Touts 'Mutually Beneficial' US-Israel Alliance, Urges No Vote On Bill To Block Arms Sales

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