On Thursday’s broadcast of C-SPAN’s “Washington Journal,” Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA) responded to critics of President Joe Biden’s Middle East foreign policy as too passive by stating that Biden and his administration have done a good job walking the line of avoiding escalation in the Middle East, but also acknowledged that it’s “not clear that our responses” to the Houthis “have made enough of a difference, to be honest. It still continues to be a struggle to be able to navigate those waters freely for many communities and nations.”
Host Greta Brawner asked, “The U.S. has been responding to the threat of the Houthis, and especially the presence that they have on the Red Sea and the threat to global commerce. What can you tell us — I know you’re on the Intelligence Committee, there’s probably — it’s limited what you can tell us — but what sort of impact is this having on the Houthis, who are backed by Iran?”
Houlahan answered, “It’s not clear that our responses have made enough of a difference, to be honest. It still continues to be a struggle to be able to navigate those waters freely for many communities and nations. But I think our responses have made some amount of a difference, and I’m certain that we will continue to respond as we have been, and as the President will in the coming days or weeks, depending on whatever plan he’s decided to execute on.”
Brawner then asked, “What are your concerns in the region with potential escalation?”
Houlahan responded, “I have deep concerns about that, and I think that’s one of the fine lines that the President and his administration [have] had to walk. Any sort of thing that is done on behalf of us and in protection of our allies has the opportunity and the possibility of escalating what’s going on in the region, and I think it’s very, very important that we tread that — walk that line very, very carefully. So far, I believe that this administration has done that. And I think some of the criticism that’s coming from my colleagues on the right about a more aggressive response really needs to be put in its place. It needs to be a very thoughtful response on how we are retaliating, when we are retaliating, to whom we are retaliating with, so that we make sure that we don’t escalate this into a much larger conflict.”
Follow Ian Hanchett on Twitter @IanHanchett
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