CNN’s Kate Bolduan grilled Democratic California Rep. Ro Khanna on Friday after he called for a ceasefire in Israel but did not say what would come after.
Bolduan asked Khanna about his reaction to Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s comments that, while Israel has a right to self-defense, Israel and the U.S. need to do more to protect Palestinian civilians.
“What does this look like for you?”
“Well, let me be very clear. The bombing of innocent civilians, women and children needs to stop. It needs to stop today,” Khanna began.
“And this is an emerging sentiment among Democrats in the House and the Senate from Senator Chris Murphy all the way to progressive Democrats. Now, I believe Israel has a right to bring Hamas perpetrators to justice. I believe in their right to self-defense. But when we went after Osama bin Laden, we did not bomb Pakistani civilians. When India was attacked with a terrorist attack in Mumbai, they did not just bomb civilians. So, we need to look at how surgically Hamas perpetrators can be brought to justice. But the bombing that is on CNN and on everyone’s social media, that needs to end.”
“Really quickly, though: how?” Bolduan asked. “What is the difference between a pause and a ceasefire? How do you make sure that you’re going about taking out Hamas terrorists when they, as Tony Blinken just said, they use Palestinian civilians as human shields? How do you do it effectively? How do you pause without allowing Hamas to take advantage of the pause?”
“These are not easy questions, but when we talk in generalities, it may sound good, but how specifically do you think they do it?” Bolduan continued.
WASHINGTON, DC – JUNE 22: U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) wait for an address by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a joint meeting of Congress at the U.S. Capitol on June 22, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
“Well, I think they do it the way Thomas Friedman has written about extensively, which is through surgical strikes, through special forces, through looking, and this may take time,” Khanna said. (RELATED: Over 2,500 Orthodox Jewish Rabbis Sign Letter Condemning Liberal Jews’ Call For Gaza Ceasefire)
“It took many years for us to go after the terrorists responsible for 9/11, but to have vast bombing in civilian places — and I acknowledge Secretary Blinken’s point, which is absolutely correct, that Hamas is using civilians as human shields. But I don’t think, if you’re using hundreds of civilians as a human shield and you have one terrorist, that that justifies a bombing which is going to have civilians and children and women and the hundreds as collateral damage. There are more surgical and precise ways of doing it and bringing these people to justice. And that, to me, is the sentiment that I see emerging among not just young people in this country, but among many Democrats.”
President Joe Biden on Wednesday said he supported a “pause” to give time to get the prisoners out” after a heckler called for a ceasefire during his speech. Democratic Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib and other left-wing members of Congress have called for a ceasefire almost immediately after Israel responded to Hamas Oct. 7 terrorist attack on the Jewish state.