'A good speech': Biden praises Schumer's blistering criticism of Netanayhu

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President Joe Biden on Friday praised a speech by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer in which the New York Democrat called for Israel to hold elections to replace Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu five months into Israel's war with Hamas.

President Joe Biden meets with Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar in the Oval Office of the White House, Friday, March 15, 2024 in Washington.

President Joe Biden meets with Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar in the Oval Office of the White House, Friday, March 15, 2024 in Washington.

Biden told reporters that Schumer contacted senior White House staff in advance that he planned to deliver Thursday's speech, in which Schumer from the Senate floor blasted Netanyahu as an obstacle to peace in the Middle East, saying he has "lost his way" by putting "political survival" ahead of the best interests of Israel.

"I'm not going to elaborate on the speech," Biden said. "He made a good speech, and I think he expressed serious concern shared not only by him, but by many Americans."

Schumer, a close ally of Biden and the highest-ranking elected Jewish official in U.S. history, said Thursday that "it has become clear to me: The Netanyahu coalition no longer fits the needs of Israel after Oct. 7."

“Nobody expects Prime Minister Netanyahu to do the things that must be done to break the cycle of violence, preserve Israel’s credibility on the world stage and work toward a two-state solution," Schumer said.

Schumer called a new election in Israel "the only way to allow for a healthy and open decision-making process about the future of Israel."

The White House stopped short of endorsing Schumer's push for new elections in Israel. John Kirby, the White House's spokesman for the National Security Council, said, "That's going to be up for the Israeli people to decide," when asked whether Biden supports new elections to replace Netanyahu.

Kirby said Biden was speaking to "the passion with which Leader Schumer made that speech," adding that Biden knows Schumer's remarks "resonate with many Americans."

"For our part, we're going to keep supporting Israel in their fight against Hamas," Kirby said, declining to elaborate further on Biden's views on Schumer's position. "I'll leave it at the president's comments."

The Biden administration has become increasingly at odds with Netanyahu over Israel's refusal to scale back the war in Gaza and its efforts to get humanitarian aid to Palestinian civilians. Biden has faced increasing pressure from progressives and Arab-Americans for his unwavering support of Israel in the months since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel.

Netanyahu has refused Biden's demand for a two-state solution to the Middle East crisis and has pledged to continue the war in Gaza until Hamas is crushed.

Last week, top White House officials including Vice President Kamala Harris met with Benny Gantz, a member of Israel’s wartime Cabinet and a centrist political rival of Netanyahu, who did not authorize Gantz's trip to Washington. Gantz is widely considered to be Netanyahu's most likely election opponent.

After Biden's State of the Union address last week, Biden was caught on a hot microphone saying he's going to need a "come to Jesus meeting" with Netanyahu.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., departs after saying he believes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has "lost his way" and is an obstacle to peace in the region amid a growing humanitarian crisis in Gaza, at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, March 14, 2024. Schumer, who is the highest-ranking Jewish official in the U.S., strongly criticized Netanyahu in a lengthy speech and called for Israel to hold new elections. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) ORG XMIT: DCSA102
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., departs after saying he believes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has "lost his way" and is an obstacle to peace in the region amid a growing humanitarian crisis in Gaza, at the Capitol in Washington, Thursday, March 14, 2024. Schumer, who is the highest-ranking Jewish official in the U.S., strongly criticized Netanyahu in a lengthy speech and called for Israel to hold new elections.

Sen. Chuck Schumer calls for new elections in Israel

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, the highest-ranking U.S. Jewish leader, called for new elections in Israel in a stunning denouncement of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Schumer, D-N.Y., charged that Netanyahu has "lost his way" trying to hold his Israeli conservative coalition together during its war against Hamas and is on the verge of losing the sympathy of the world.

"The Netanyahu coalition no longer fits the needs of Israel after Oct. 7," Schumer said. "The world has changed, radically, since then, and the Israeli people are being stifled right now by a governing vision that is stuck in the past."

Schumer said Netanyahu has let political survival among conservatives get in the way of what is best for the country by dismissing a two-state solution. He called for the country to make a "course correction" and it cannot survive "if it becomes a pariah" of the world.

"Five months into the conflict, it is clear that Israelis need to take stock of the situation and ask, must we change course?" Schumer said. "At this critical juncture, I believe a new election is the only way to allow for a healthy and open decision-making process about the future of Israel."

The tone is a change from Schumer's past remarks, where Schumer defended Israel as the past victims of anti-Semitic activities around the world as well as the right to defend itself and secure its future.

While President Joe Biden has expressed frustration with Netanyahu over the protection of Palestinian civilians, he has never gone as far as Schumer went on Thursday.

Schumer called on Israel to embrace a two-state solution, saying without it that Israel could find itself in a constant state of war.

"[The United States] should not be forced into a position of unequivocally supporting the actions of an Israeli government that includes bigots who reject the idea of a Palestinian state."

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