Republicans are demanding that President Joe Biden personally condemn the “hate-filled little Gazans” who have appeared on college campuses across the country.
On Wednesday, Republican Senator Tom Cotton used this language to describe universities, saying they have turned into “disgusting cesspools of anti-Semitic hatred filled with pro-Hamas sympathizers, fanatics and monsters.”
“When will the president himself, and not his spokespersons, condemn these little Gazans filled with hatred? asked Cotton.
At the White House press briefing, press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre insisted Biden did his part — even though he didn’t answer questions about or talk about the university protests in a speech or public appearance.
“He is monitoring the situation closely. His team too. And I would just add that no president, no president, has spoken more forcefully about the fight against anti-Semitism than this president,” Jean-Pierre said.
Republican Sen. Tom Cotton (L) called on President Joe Biden on Wednesday to denounce the “hate-filled little Gazans” who have been popping up on college campuses, while press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre defended the president’s response. president.
President Joe Biden spent Tuesday in Wilmington, Delaware, filming a mysterious campaign-related project. He did not personally respond to questions about this week’s student protests
She was the last of a trio of White House spokespeople to answer questions about Biden’s feelings about the mass protests.
White House spokesman Andrew Bates issued a statement Tuesday after Columbia University students and outside agitators took over Hamilton Hall and hung a banner reading “Intifada” , among other signs.
The phrase is used to encourage violence against Jews and Israelis.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby called the storming of a building on Columbia’s campus “absolutely the wrong approach” when asked about the protests during a call to the press Tuesday morning.
“Seizing a building by force is not peaceful,” Jean-Pierre reiterated on Wednesday.
On Tuesday, Biden traveled to Wilmington, Delaware, for a mysterious campaign event, filming some sort of content at the same high school where he introduced Kamala Harris for vice president.
He did not answer questions during the trip and the group of journalists following him were held in a separate auditorium for hours.
Pro-Palestinian protesters took over Hamilton Hall in Columbia and hung a flag reading “Infifada,” which generally calls for violence against Jews and Israelis.
The president has no public events on his schedule Wednesday until an early evening political fundraiser.
Overnight in New York, the New York Police were called in to disperse pro-Palestinian protests and encampments at Columbia and other college campuses.
The White House would not say whether that was the appropriate response — or whether the president had been in contact with New York’s Democratic mayor, Eric Adams.
“It’s a decision that belongs to colleges and universities,” Jean-Pierre said.
Jean-Pierre was repeatedly pressed on whether the president considered the protests “legitimate.”
“We believe and understand that this is a painful time for many communities,” she responded. “And we also believe that people have the right, Americans have the right to peacefully protest.”
“Hate speech should not be allowed, we should condemn it,” she also responded.
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