New York, N.Y. – House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik joined The Guy Benson Show to discuss the weak leadership of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris which emboldened Iran to attack Israel, combating antisemitism, and the need to return to President Donald Trump’s peace through strength policies.
Listen to her full interview here.
View highlights from her interview below:
On Joe Biden and Kamala Harris’ Weak Leadership Leading to Iran Attack on Israel:
“My reaction is: this is a result of the catastrophic, failed leadership of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. Let’s take a step back of where we were under President Trump. You had the very successful maximum pressure campaign that really had brought Iran to heel, and yet, you have seen under Kamala Harris and Joe Biden hundreds of billions of dollars of sanctions relief essentially writing the check that went to fund these proxies, whether it’s Hamas and Hezbollah committing terrorist attacks against Israel and now an unprecedented, direct hypersonic ballistic missile, numerous, targeted towards Israel. So this is what weak leadership leads to and it’s more important than ever that we return to the effective peace through strength policies of President Trump. And it’s not just targeting Israel. Iran and Iranian proxies have been targeting U.S. service members throughout Biden’s presidency. I represent the 10th Mountain Division, home of Fort Drum and the most deployed division in the U.S. army, and there have been multiple instances of Iranian-backed terrorist attacks that injured U.S. service members even last year. So this has an implication on our national security and the safety and security of our U.S. forces in the region.”
On Unequivocally Standing With Israel:
“Well, certainly House Republicans will be unified in their support of Israel. It is Iran who has escalated this catastrophe in the Middle East starting on October 7th when they committed the bloodiest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust, the tens of thousands of missiles that have rained down on Northern Israel–causing 80,000 Israelis to have to leave their home–from Hezbollah. And Israel is taking actions to protect its existential existence, Guy, and we strongly support as House Republicans. I think what you will continue to see in today's Democrat Party, led by Kamala Harris, is this anti-Israel, anti-Zionist Left that is strains of antisemitism even in the halls of Congress, and it needs to be called out. It is more important than ever that the United States stand side by side with Israel at her most important time of need.”
On the Moral Depravity of the Mainstream Media in Idolizing Terrorists:
“And that’s how far the mainstream media has fallen. Their moral depravity was on full display when you saw obituaries in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The New Yorker, and the Associated Press essentially idolize one of the bloodiest terrorists on the planet, who has the blood of innocent Israelis but also the blood of Muslims. These terrorist groups, these Iranian-backed terrorist proxies use women and children as civilian shields. And the fact that U.S. media outlets would prop them up and idolize them, it is a disgrace. And it's why the approval rating for mainstream media is at a historic low right now because the media has lost their way much like today's Democrat Party has lost their way, much like universities have lost their way which I've been heavily involved in.”
On the Need to Restore President Trump’s Peace Through Strength Leadership and Defund UNRWA:
“We need to defund UNRWA. That's what we did during the Trump Administration. That's what Republicans stood up for on the House Floor, and you talked about accusations. It is more than accusations. It is individuals who are employed by UNRWA, who planned the October 7th terrorist attack against Israel, who is Hamas' leader located in Lebanon. The fact that they are personnel of UNRWA just goes to show the moral depravity and the antisemitism has been on full display, unfortunately, with the UN. That's why we need to restore strong America First peace through strength leadership that President Trump brought to the world stage, and he will do so again. And you know, Guy, people are focused on the economy. They're focused on the border, but they're also focused on national security. And that's an issue where President Trump—when you compare the peace and prosperity around the world—we were in a much different position, particularly in the Middle East just four years ago, compared to where we are today, where there's chaos and catastrophe. And this shows there is a direct response to the weakness from Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. And an effective foreign policy is not Joe Biden going on TV saying, “Don't. Don't.” Obviously our adversaries are ignoring that because they see weakness on the world stage, and the policies have appeased Iran rather than the maximum pressure campaign under President Trump.”
On Continuing to Hold Higher Education Institutions Accountable for Antisemitism on College Campuses:
“Well, they have to take it seriously, and we're going to continue holding them accountable until they do take it seriously. Yes, I saw that horrific meme, and this was the point we were making, Guy, in many of those hearings is that this is not just a slogan. It is a call to genocide. And, oh, by the way, after they say ‘Death to Israel,’ what do they say next? They say, ‘Death to America.’ This is about defeating Western civilization, our way of life. And they are targeting our allies in Israel, and they're coming after the United States of America. They've been very specific and explicit about that. So there needs to be immediate action and enforcement of the rules of these college campuses. You know, in my meetings with campuses, people in the higher education community, I talk about discipline and enforcement of the rules. They cannot continue to brush this under the rug when there are clear violations of the rules, whether it's the pro-Hamas encampments that are a violation of the rules or calls for genocide in these schools. President Trump gave a very important speech two weeks ago in Washington, D.C. about combating antisemitism. He said on day one, if higher ed universities fail to provide civil rights protections for Jewish students—which, by the way, he expanded with Title VI protections—they will lose their accreditation on day one. That is the type of leadership we need. We're not seeing any of that from Joe Biden and Kamala Harris' Department of Education. In fact, they have refused to launch Title VI investigations of these schools, and they're using the excuse that there's outside lawsuits. There needs to be Title VI enforcements run by the Department of Education.”
On the Failed, Fatal Nursing Home Executive Order of Andrew Cuomo:
“Yeah, that just shows the arrogance and typical Andrew Cuomo. Look in New York, or when you're in New York politics, you know that Andrew Cuomo was focused on every last detail coming out of the governor's office. And there was no question that he not only ordered, but that he drafted and edited the fatal nursing home executive order. And I believe he committed perjury, and we're going to continue to do everything we can, turning over every stone in this investigation. We have already come so far, and I would look to some of his top aides: Jim Malatras, who spoke to the New York Post about, you know, the essential threats from Andrew Cuomo when Malatras was testifying before our committee. We're going to continue to demand those documents and demand them from the Hochul Administration, who is failing to turn them over, and that includes issuing subpoenas. So there's a lot more to come on this, but he will never hold elected office again regardless of the arrogance that he thinks he can run for mayor.”
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