Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis took aim Saturday at President Joe Biden over his supposed lack of attention on Hamas’ attack against Israel, Fox News reported.
DeSantis claimed Biden was “sleeping on the job” as Hamas militants pummeled Israel with rockets, invaded the country, took hostages and murdered civilians, per the outlet. (RELATED: ‘With Overwhelming Force’: 2024 Presidential Candidates Respond To Attack On Israel)
“I saw the president’s comments with respect to the attacks on Israel. He said that he was up at 7:30 in the morning, but, you know, this was happening late, late last night into the early morning. The president needs to be there answering the call when our top ally in the Middle East is under the gun,” DeSantis said to reporters.
NOT PULLING PUNCHES: Gov. DeSantis accused President Biden of “sleeping on the job.” https://t.co/Pae9NULaPs pic.twitter.com/Qd1AM5wAb9
— Fox News (@FoxNews) October 8, 2023
“You can’t be sleeping on the job. You’ve got to get there, you’ve got to do it, and you’ve got to engage,” he said, “I think that we need to see leadership here. We need a very clear voice, we need strong support for the state of Israel.”
DeSantis then claimed the Biden administration’s policies on Iran likely made the situation in the Middle East worse, saying it seeks to “play nice with Iran.” He also highlighted the recent move by the administration to hand over $6 billion in previously withheld funds to the authoritarian state in exchange for the release of a prisoner, per the outlet.
DeSantis argued that Iran has been one of the biggest financial backers of Hamas.
“Of course they’re funding Hamas and Hezbollah in big ways,” DeSantis said.
“We’re standing with them,” he added, “It’s important that in America that we all acknowledge and support their right to defend themselves … These are terrorist attacks.”
Hamas launched over 2,000 missiles into Israel at daybreak Saturday. The terror organization invaded Israel, killing over 250 civilians with the death toll expected to rise, according to several reports.