Sen. Cotton: President Biden must work with Saudi Arabia instead of 'ostracizing' them
Sen. Cotton: Saudi Arabia is a 'reliable ally' for America against Iran
Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., discussed the ongoing issues surrounding the Middle East while appearing on "Sunday Night in America" with Fox News host Trey Gowdy.
President Biden recently received widespread criticism for an image of him fist-bumping Saudi Arabia Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman after the former previously insisted on treating the country as a "pariah" for the death of a journalist in 2018. Although Cotton agreed that Biden’s trip was mostly unsuccessful, he added that the United States’ relationship with Saudi Arabia is more complex than one would realize.
"Well, the Saudi government and Trump administration addressed the regrettable killing of Jamal Khashoggi four years ago. What we have to realize, though, is that Saudi Arabia has been a partner for 80 years. Are they a perfect partner? No, but no one is. And if we only took perfect partners we would have no partners or allies. It’s a dangerous world out there. It’s not a church picnic. We take our allies where we can find them. Saudi Arabia, like so many other Arab nations, have been reliable allies against Iran which still to this day chants ‘Death to America,’" Cotton said.
Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) speaks to the media after attending a briefing with administration officials about the situation with Iran, at the U.S. Capitol on January 8, 2020 in Washington, DC. . (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images)
He continued to criticize Biden as being uniquely unable to maintain a suitable relationship with Saudi Arabia.
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"And for 80 years, American presidents of both parties have figured out ways to work with Saudi Arabia. Joe Biden comes along though says he’s going to treat them like a pariah and ostracize them. And it’s not surprising that he didn’t accomplish much on this trip for that reason. I hope he can find a way to work with the Saudi government going forward as it works ever more closely with other friends we have in the region like Israel try to stand up to Iran’s campaign of terror and imperial aggression. It would make us all safer," Cotton said.
More importantly, Cotton noted, was the need to treat Iran as a proper adversary, something he claims Biden has not properly done.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman fist bumps U.S. President Joe Biden upon his arrival at Al Salman Palace, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. (Reuters)
He explained, "The contrast between Saudi Arabia and Iran is a good one. There’s a simple difference between those two countries. Saudi Arabia is pro-American and Iran is anti-American, and Joe Biden from his earliest days in the Senate in the 1970s has been a blame America first Democrat."
"He and other Democrats like him always blame America first, and they side with so many of the resistance nations in the world they think are standing up to American power. That is why Barack Obama and Joe Biden have conciliating with Iran for the last 15 years even as under both Barack Obama’s watch and now Joe Biden’s watch, they’ve let Iran rush forward with a nuclear weapon," Cotton added.
Although Biden has pledged to never allow Iran to acquire nuclear weapons and promised military forces "as a last resort," Cotton suggested he had more faith in Israel and their Arab allies to maintain a threat against the ayatollahs.
President Biden has never to allow Iran to acquire nuclear weapons. (iStock)
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"Joe Biden may be willing to let Iran be just one wrench turn left of a nuclear weapon, I suspect that Israel is not, and whoever wins their elections later this year I suspect to have the united support of people of Israel and its new government and not a few Arab nations as well. It has to take military action against Iran and that’s probably a lot more credible threat to the ayatollahs than Joe Biden finally and begrudgingly saying that he would use military forces to stop Iran from getting the bomb," Cotton closed.
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