Motion to Discharge--S.J. Res. 111
Floor Speech
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Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, I come to the floor to speak on the resolutions we will be voting on shortly to share why I strongly oppose them.
Israel is surrounded by enemies dedicated to its annihilation, from Hamas to Hezbollah, to the Houthis, to most threateningly of all, Iran.
These threats, sadly, have been around for a long time and will persist for many years into the future. Israel needs to protect itself, not just today but also tomorrow and next year and beyond. It has been a cornerstone of American policy to give Israel the resources it needs to defend against its enemies. We should not stray from that policy today.
Many of the arms sales in question today will not reach Israel until years from now. We have no idea what kind of threats Israel will face by then. It could be an even more emboldened Iran or a strengthened Hezbollah or some other threat.
There are few, if any, who imagined the barbaric assault perpetrated by Hamas on October 7. The twisted and hateful ideology that underpins that violence from places like Iran will sadly continue in the region for some time to come. Israel will need to be fully prepared to face those threats. So voting to block assistance today could well very embolden Hamas and Hezbollah and Iran and endanger Israel's security on into the future.
I know there are many in this Chamber who have been strongly critical of Prime Minister Netanyahu's policies. I am certainly one of them, as I have made clear right here on the Senate floor, where I clearly stated the urgent need to diligently pursue a two-state solution.
I have also made clear that Israel must do more to reduce the suffering of innocent civilians in Gaza and do much more to get humanitarian aid to where it is urgently needed. However, our security assistance to Israel transcends any one Prime Minister or any one government.
This is about Israel's long-term security and honoring a cornerstone of the U.S. policy that we will give Israel--a democracy and a steadfast ally--the resources it needs to protect itself in a difficult world.
There are ways to express criticism and to work on addressing these criticisms without impacting Israel's security.
So this is why I will be voting no. Again, while it is perfectly legitimate to have objections with the Netanyahu government--and I know many of my colleagues wish to express their disapproval--I believe these resolutions are the wrong way and the wrong strategy to voice those objections.
I vote no and urge others to do the same.
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