DEVELOPING: Israel Begins Ground Operations Against Hamas

Today on Sekulow, Israel begins ground operations against Hamas. We will be joined by U.S. Senator James Lankford and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

Live from Washington, D.C., Sekulow Live. Intense fighting erupted overnight as Israel launched a massive ground and air assault against the factions inside Gaza. According to Israeli military officials, more than 450 rounds were fired inside Gaza. More than 250 rounds were fired into the Strip, trying to target some of the Hamas underground infrastructure.

Those tunnels getting targeted, but there was also a lot of other destruction. Phone lines are open for your questions right now. Call 1-800-684-3110.

All of this is going on against the backdrop of the United States having made a decision why Americans are providing money to the Palestinians while the Palestinians are conducting terror operations against our friend and ally, Israel. And now your host, Jordan Sekulow. Welcome to Sekulow. We are taking your phone calls too on this Friday. 1-800-684-3110.

That's 1-800-684-3110. As you heard, we'll be joined in the next segment live by Senator James Lankford. Then we'll be joined by our Senior Counsel for Global Affairs, Mike Pompeo, as well, to weigh in on what is happening in the Middle East. We took kind of a diversion yesterday from that to focus on what's happening domestically on our southern border, but we have to reiterate again the overnight Israel launching over a thousand different types of missile attacks, rocket attacks back into the Gaza Strip in response to the barrage of rockets that have been fired at Israel. Israeli civilians have been killed. There were reports yesterday that a ground-like invasion had already started from Israel into the Gaza Strip, and then later on that was corrected to say, no, the ground troops are being utilized, ground forces are being utilized. Now, if you've been there and you understand how close this is, you would realize that things like tanks and other kind of troop carriers, when you say they're being utilized, they're being utilized. It's right there. There's not a big no man's land. That no man's land is basically where the Iron Dome operates, where it has that split second in time to be able to take down the rocket fire. But I want to go to Thad Bennett in Washington, D.C. right away because, Thad, we've got Senator Lankford joining us next.

44 U.S. Senators, including Senator Lankford, Senator Rubio leading this effort, but Senator Lankford is going to join us to talk about it, have called on Joe Biden to take this example, look at what Iran is saying. They are praising what Hamas is doing in the Gaza Strip.

They are funding a lot of this. They are providing the weapons and stop the negotiations. Jordan, this is a very strong showing from Senate Republicans just a couple of days after this conflict started to have 44 senators sign a letter to the President of this magnitude. Look, there's a lot of things in the letter, Jordan, but I think this one line sums up where these senators are. It says to the President, it says, we call on you to immediately end negotiations with Iran. So, Jordan, they are not asking for, you know, some statement of support for Israel, something as simple as that. They want for the negotiations with Iran to stop.

And I also thought this was appropriate. Senator Lankford, who's joining us in the next segment of the broadcast, he tweeted this. He said, I stand with our ally and friend Israel. Iran remains the world's largest state sponsor of terrorism and is behind the current attack on Israel. Marco Rubio, my colleagues and I are calling on President Biden to end negotiations and stand firmly with Israel. Jordan, that's where the American people are. That's where they want the United States Senate to be.

Yeah, no, absolutely. So, folks, I want you to share this with your friends and family now. This is a special Friday broadcast to have these, I guess, back to back live. So you're going to hear from Senator Lankford live about what the U.S. Senate and the pressure there and the unique angle of Iran. You cannot ignore Iran's role. It's a growing role in the Palestinian conflict, and it increases every time Iran has more financial resources.

They're able to play more. There's also rocket fire coming in. Not a ton yet, but there's some coming in from Lebanon. That would be likely Hezbollah, which is even a more direct tie to Iran. So we're going to have Senator Lankford joining us next, then former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

What needs to be done and how do we stand with Israel clearly to make this not again just about talking about two sides and hopefully that it comes to the conflict comes to an end, but taking sides, taking the right side as well. So you definitely share this with your friends and family if you're watching on social media, any of Facebook, YouTube. We've got Senator Lankford joining us coming right out in the next segment. Protecting your freedoms, defending your rights in courts, in Congress and in the public arena. And we have an exceptional track record of success.

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Become a member today. ACLJ.org Only when a society can agree that the most vulnerable and voiceless deserve to be protected is there any hope for that culture to survive. And that's exactly what you are saying when you stand with the American Center for Law and Justice to defend the right to life. We've created a free, powerful publication offering a panoramic view of the ACLJ's battle for the unborn.

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1-800-684-3110. So a conflict which is not yet coming to an end. There's not been cease fires.

Sometimes that happens after a couple days. But this is something I think unique because we're seeing the Middle East unfortunately on fire. And this was not, we've heard from so many commentators. It just seems like there is a vacuum here. And the vacuum is the United States government led by our President, Joe Biden, who is just because of inter-party warfare on support of Israel.

It's just kind of been a little bit, again like that, the vacuum needs to be filled. This is concerning Jordan because for decades there has been broad bipartisan support in both the Senate and the House for our ally Israel. It's been, it's crossed party lines.

It's really generated from the grassroots up. Republican voters and Democrat voters want their members to stand with Israel. Jordan, I think you're going to hear from Senator Lankford here in a minute that that maybe still exists but it's not as loud as it needs to be. Yeah, Senator Lankford is joining us now.

U.S. Senator from Oklahoma, a great friend of the ACLJ and someone who fights for all of us around the country. Senator, thanks so much for spending some time with us today. We're glad to be able to do it. Thanks for the topic today. We're glad to be able to do it.

Thanks for the topic today. We talked about, there's reports that the U.S. is preparing to unfreeze a billion dollars to Iran as a goodwill gesture. This is at a time when we know that Iran's foreign minister, Zarif, who's known to the kind of U.S. audience because he's put out there as kind of the face of Iran, has put in messages to the head of Hamas, Ismail Haneis, supporting the escalation of a conflict that didn't need to escalate, supporting this aggression. We've heard from other groups, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, saying that the rockets they're firing, what they're utilizing came directly from Iran.

They're implicating, you know, Qasem Soleimani in this. But this whole effort, again, the idea that while this is happening, the U.S., it just seems like the U.S. government, the Biden administration, Senator Lankford, is almost like begging Iran to go back to the negotiating table. Yeah, they're begging Iran to go back to negotiating, and they want to be able to get a big deal in the Middle East, and their focus is on trying to be able to resolve things with Iran. Again, the exact same thing the Obama administration did. They distanced themselves from every other ally in the region so they could reach out to Iran. The Biden team is doing the exact same thing again. It's bad history repeating itself. If they continue to be able to focus in on telling Iran that if you'll just do these two or three things, we'll give you more money, that money will go directly into rockets that will be fired on Israel.

And it's a terrible decision. And when you continue to be able to put pressure on the Biden team to say, do not lift the maximum pressure on Iran, we need Iran to be able to speak to the Gaza. We need Iran to be able to speak to Hezbollah in Lebanon and tell them, no more rockets. They are the ones that could actually do this. But if we're actually telling Iran that we're going to normalize in some way, some relations or lift sanctions with you, they will just continue to be able to press down on Israel with that.

Senator Lankford, Than Bennett here. Appreciate you being with us. Appreciate your voice on this and also your voice on the crisis that's happening down at the border.

Appreciate the live streaming you were doing down there. I wanted to ask you, as we interact with the American people every day, I think it's important for us always to reiterate to them just how critical our alliance with Israel is. Everything from security to economics to innovation. And we just came through this period of time where that alliance was strengthened through the Abraham Accords and through so many other efforts. But now it really seems like Hamas is emboldened.

And I think that's pretty much a fact at this point. I'm wondering what you think we can do for everyday Americans to help Washington, D.C. realize that a strong alliance with Israel is not only in the best interest of America, Senator, but it's also in the best interest of the world. What can everyday Americans do to help convince your colleagues in the Senate of that fact? Continue to engage in conversation just with your neighbor how important Israel really is to international security and stability. What we watched with the Abraham Accords with four different nations actually forming normalized relations with Israel in the last year is a remarkable achievement of the Trump administration. And it's a remarkable diplomatic achievement. So for those nations, Sudan, for the UAE, for Bahrain, for countries in the region to be able to step in and say, we're going to engage with Israel, what has been blocked for a long time, opens up dialogue again to say, let's start working on religious liberty issues, as they did in the Abraham Accords. They were going to respect religious liberty.

That is a remarkable statement there. So we're going to start doing trade agreements where the UAE and Israel are currently working on a natural gas deal. You start providing energy in the region with multiple nations like UAE and Israel cooperating together that brings stability to the region that lowers the level of military force that's needed in the region to be able to bring some calm there. That is good for everyone. That's good for our budget. That's good for world peace. That's good for trade relations in the future. That's good for economic development.

That is a positive thing. But what we're seeing right now is a rise on the left of people saying the Palestinians are oppressed people, Israel are the oppressors, and people on the left here in America are rising up to be able to speak out for the Palestinians. Listen, the Palestinians deserve the opportunity to be able to live in freedom and safety and security, but Hamas is not providing that to them. Hezbollah is not providing that to them. So we want stability and freedom for the Palestinian people as well.

But living under the thumb of a terrorist does not provide that. You know, this idea too, so much progress is made, certainly for so much positive progress is made in a region that can be very volatile, showing that this week. And yet it just seems like the Biden administration, nowhere to be found on this.

What are you getting back when you sent the letter? Again, I don't think it's so much Joe Biden, President Biden himself, but clearly the party, the Democrat party, his party is now, as you said, it's fully divided on this issue. It is a loud, there's a loud anti-Israel, pro-Palestinian voice, and pro-Palestinian voice, it's not like you said about the people so much as it is about these political movements and terrorist movements.

Right, that's correct. That's why it's so important and people can stay engaged with their senators and house members. They'll say, hey, we want to be able to stand with Israel, that is the right thing to be able to do. Israel is not the aggressor in this area.

And the reason I encourage you, you may think, well, of course that's obvious. I would tell you, liberal offices in the House and the Senate are getting bombarded with calls from activist liberals across the country saying, Israel is the aggressor, we should do sanctions on Israel, we should cut off any funds or aid to Israel, we should support the Palestinian leadership. I mean, that's what's coming from the left right now.

So a counterbalance on that would be very important for people to be able to hear, here's what I know you believe, but please make sure you hear it from me clearly. We need to be able to stand with Israel. Israel is not the aggressor. Israel has the right to be able to protect their own sovereignty.

And the Palestinian people have the right to be able to one day not live under the thumb of these terrorist leaders. Dave, you got another question for the Senator? Yes, Senator, I just wanted to quickly ask you what you're hearing from your Democrat colleagues. I know that you have a good relationship with Senator Coons, for one.

I know that he and Senator Murphy were over in Vienna negotiating alongside the administration for the deal. I know in many instances they have been with Israel on these key issues. I'm wondering if you can share anything about what you're hearing from them, and if there's an opportunity for maybe more of them to come alongside those of you that are in this letter.

Anything from them? Yeah, I do talk to all of them, and there is a real engagement where they have their interests on trying to be able to bring peace to the region, which everyone does. But I think the best way to be able to do that is they need to be able to hear from people, is the way to be able to say, stand firmly with Israel. That sends a message to everyone in the region to say, we're not going to guess which way America is going. We know which way America is going, and that brings peace and stability to the region. But yeah, Chris Coons and others, I won't speak for them, but I would say they're very supportive of Israel. They're very engaged in the issue. Everyone wants to form some sort of peaceful negotiation here, but at the end of the day, the best way to do it is not to empower Iran.

Empowering Iran empowers the terrorists. Senator Lankford, Senator James Lankford of Oklahoma, let me thank you for taking time out today, and it's a busy time to talk about this issue to help educate our audience as well. We appreciate it so much, and for standing up for our ally, Israel. Thank you, Senator. No, great.

Thank you very much. All right, folks, we come back again, and you're getting live information here from US senators, from Senator Lankford. We come back, former Secretary of State, our Senior Counsel for Global Affairs, Mike Pompeo will be joining us as well to discuss this.

So we'll get that perspective from someone who was in the State Department as Secretary of State, former CIA Director, on what is happening in the region. Share this with your friends and family, and we want to interact with you. Second half hour of the broadcast, we'll have more time to take your phone calls, to take your thoughts and comments. Start getting those in now. 1-800-684-3110. That's 1-800-684-3110. We'll be right back.

Is there any hope for that culture to survive? And that's exactly what you are saying when you stand with the American Center for Law and Justice to defend the right to life. We've created a free, powerful publication offering a panoramic view of the ACLJ's battle for the unborn.

It's called Mission Life. It will show you how you are personally impacting the pro-life battle through your support. And the publication includes a look at all major ACLJ pro-life cases, how we're fighting for the rights of pro-life activists, the ramifications of Roe v. Wade 40 years later, play on parenthood's role in the abortion industry, and what Obamacare means to the pro-life movement. Discover the many ways your membership with the ACLJ is empowering the right to life.

Request your free copy of Mission Life today online at ACLJ.org slash gift. The challenges facing Americans are substantial. At a time when our values, our freedoms, our constitutional rights are under attack, it's more important than ever to stand with the American Center for Law and Justice. For decades now, the ACLJ has been on the front lines protecting your freedoms, defending your rights, in courts, in Congress, and in the public arena.

And we have an exceptional track record of success. But here's the bottom line, we could not do our work without your support. We remain committed to protecting your religious and constitutional freedoms.

That remains our top priority, especially now during these challenging times. The American Center for Law and Justice is on your side. If you're already a member, thank you. And if you're not, well, this is the perfect time to stand with us at ACLJ.org, where you can learn more about our life changing work. Become a member today, ACLJ.org.

Back to back. Great discussions today already on secular. We were just joined by US Senator James Langford about the letter to call on President Biden. 44 US senators signed that letter to call on President Biden to stop the negotiations with Iran while we know Iran is supporting the Hamas aggression against Israel. We are now joined by our Senior Counsel for Global Affairs, former Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo.

And Secretary Pompeo, let me go right to this. You tweeted this morning that Hezbollah and Hamas know that they're about to be flush with cash. So their efforts to undermine Middle East stability, the Abraham Accords, and Israel's security will continue.

Appeasement of Iran is destabilizing the Middle East, and it's shocking that the Democrats don't understand this. Do you believe that this is going to continue to escalate? I know sometimes things get a little quieter. On Friday, it's Shabbat. It's the Friday prayers as well.

But then they can quickly escalate again. Well, Jordan, look, in the first instance, the responsibility for these terror attacks on Israeli civilians belongs to Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad. They're the responsible, they're the perpetrators, the Palestinian authority in the West Bank has done nothing to stop it. But make no mistake about it, they are underwritten, supported militarily and financially by the Islamic Republic of Iran. And while this is taking place, while these rockets are landing on civilians in Israel that are of Iranian origin and Iranian support, the United States is sitting at the table in Vienna negotiating to hand over billions of dollars in financial assistance to the very Iranian regime that is funding Hezbollah and Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad. It makes no sense. I heard what Senator Lankford said, what James said.

He is spot on in that ask. We need to stop this. You'll remember too, Jordan, the previous administration, the Trump administration that I was a part of stopped funding the UNWRA, the Palestinians.

We're going to turn that back on. We're providing money to the very people that are engaged in terror. This is deeply inconsistent with our commitment to Israel.

We ought to stop it immediately. These groups are being, they are going on TV, Secretary Pompeo, they are saying that the head of Palestinian Islamic Jihad and one of their leaders went on Palestinian television and said we're getting the weapons, we're getting our food, we're getting everything from the Iranians. I think sometimes there is this kind of divide in Washington thought, even when the leaders tell you that themselves. Some of these groups are really Sunni and Hamas is not really going to be friendly with Iran. It's not like Hezbollah, it's not the same kind of group, but it seems over the years it's become a much closer relationship. You could call it another proxy for Iran.

I don't know if you would have called it that 20 years ago, but it's certainly kind of evolved into that or devolved. Oh Jordan, I completely agree. No, you can certainly consider Hamas and the PIJ both were proxies that are acting in a way that is in support of the Iranian regime's effort to destroy Israel. And they're unambiguous about that. I saw reporting this morning that the head of the IRGC, the Iranian External Terror Organization was in Lebanon meeting with Hezbollah. If that's true, that would suggest also that this is a coordinated effort and we need to hold them accountable. We need to make sure that the American leaders aren't just softly supporting what Israel is doing, but making unambiguously clear that the United States fully defends Israel's right to defend itself.

And we will continue to support our friend and ally that is defending this important place, the undivided city of Jerusalem, and know that they have America's full support in doing so. This is something historically we've seen bipartisan support, but that has changed. This new group of far-left Democrats, the same ones who are from the Bernie Sanders world of radical schools, radical thought, it's becoming more mainstream inside the Democrat Party. I don't think in our country, but inside the Democrat Party. Do you think that's why, Secretary Pompeo, you get this kind of shrug-of-the-shoulders kind of response from Joe Biden?

Absolutely. You have an element inside the Democrat Party that is pro-Palestinian, anti-Zionist, and bordering in some cases and actually past the line on anti-Semitism. These are people who are deeply against the existence, the right for the Israelis to exist in this place, this Jewish homeland, and I think that tears up the Democrat Party. If you go look at Joe Biden 30 or 40 years ago, he would have been a huge supporter of Israel today. It is a grudging support that they provide to Israel when it does the simple thing of protecting its own citizens from rocket attacks that are killing its civilians, and they respond in a way that is going to protect and defend their sovereignty. I hope this administration will find the right words to make unambiguously clear that we are supporting Israel, and we understand that the terrorists are the Palestinians. Another thing, Israelis have got tough decisions to make. They have to decide if they take this aggression by Hamas and then try to use the conflict as a way to go deeper into Gaza again to eliminate more of this activity. You see these leaders say, if we don't do it now, this will happen again another year.

They'll build up their missile supply, they'll build up their tunnels again that have been destroyed, they'll fire their rockets again, and we'll just keep repeating this. But there was a time period where this was much more difficult for Hamas to pull off for about five, six years. It seemed like they didn't have the capabilities, they didn't have the resources. Do you think that was directly because the Iranians were being cut off from the economy of the world?

We know this much. We know that the maximum pressure campaign that we put on Iran denied their proxies resources. We saw that they were able to pay Hezbollah soldiers less money. There was less money to go around to go foment terror. I absolutely believe that the Iranians and the Hamas terrorists believe they're going to be flush with cash, that the Americans are going to let off the maximum pressure campaign.

Attack of this scale now, I understand over 1,500 rockets launched, would have been much more difficult for them to afford or pull off or keep rockets in reserve just now 120 days ago. Final question, Secretary Pompeo, because you tweeted this and it was something, it hit home with me because this is someone who is now the U.S. special envoy for Iran, Robert Malley, saying, you know, you got a mistake if you got to look at Hamas and Hezbollah, look at all the charity work that they do. He talks about how he has relationships with them and he is active, you know, he's in Vienna now, these are people actively out on, they are not academics, they are inside the U.S. government as the envoys to Iran speaking out for the Biden administration and they're making comments.

I mean, it was in the past, but I mean, I think that even that, the fact that he wouldn't come out and correct that, it's shocking. This world view, Jordan, you've seen it, we've now sent a special envoy to try and de-escalate the situation, I think that's his mission set. The language he's used in support of the Palestinians who are the terrorists is simply outrageous to send an American in. Look, we know Robert Malley, we know his history in negotiating with the Iranians, I can predict with almost certainty the kind of deal that Robert Malley would find acceptable.

Because when you think that Hamas is a charitable organization and when this is your world view, this is what you bring to the... It looks like right there we might have lost Secretary Pompeo, that's okay. Again, I think, just to take all that information in, we get where you take your phone calls, we'd be back in a couple minutes after our next break because there's a lot to break down here from Senator Lankford and from Secretary Pompeo. There really is, my biggest takeaway from those two segments, Jordan, the vast majority of the American people support Israel, that spills over into congressional support. But here's what I'd say, Jordan, there's a way to back up that professed support with action. You heard Secretary Pompeo talk about the maximum pressure campaign, there's a bill called the Maximum Pressure Act that would put the maximum pressure campaign back on. I'd love to see senators and congressmen supporting that bill.

We're talking about now more than ever, this is when Israel needs the U.S. and they need the support, they want to know the support is coming from the American people as well. We'll be right back on Secchia. This is the perfect time to stand with us at ACLJ.org where you can learn more about our life-changing work. Become a member today. ACLJ.org Live from Washington, D.C., Sekulow Live. And now, your host, Jordan Sekulow.

Alright, so that was a packed-in first half hour of the broadcast when you got U.S. Senator Lankford and former Secretary of State, former CIA Director, our Senior Counsel for Global Affairs, Mike Pompeo, back to back. Again, talking about the same issue but different perspectives, one coming out of the former executive branch, another coming out of the legislative branch, putting the pressure on the Biden administration, taking this opportunity to say, you know what, maybe we shouldn't be in Vienna begging the Iranians to go into a deal when the head of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, while they're firing rockets at Israeli civilians, is on TV saying, we get our food, we get our weapons, we get our clothing from Iran. And you have the Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif calling the head of Hamas, encouraging him, supporting the violence, because this is exactly what these terror groups have wanted to see.

They were out of fashion. The Middle East, especially the Gulf regions, where they used to get a lot of support and a lot of their financing, has decided, you know what, economies, our populations are more important. If we don't start taking care of our people better, we may not be in power in these kingdoms that exist throughout the Gulf. And these are countries that worked closely with the U.S., now they're working with Israel through those Abraham Accords and making peace deals with Israel. We're talking about the idea of religious liberty in the Gulf and respecting religious liberty in Israel and respecting religious liberty in those Gulf states in North Africa. So what did Iran need to see? Well, that's not good for Iran. So they have decided, because that's who is pulling the strings here, when you're providing the resources. So they've decided we've got to cause chaos in the region.

We have to somehow play a role that makes us relevant. And then suddenly, the whole conversation, Andy, about Hamas becomes a conversation about Iran. Right. It's clear, as you pointed out, that we now know, we suspected, but now we know because they admitted it, that Hamas and all the terrorist activities emanating from Gaza are backed by Iran.

And they said it. Our resources, our blood, our spirit, our money, our rockets, our missiles, our ordnance, everything is coming out of Iran. And what is the United States doing? The United States has the temerity, the audacity, through the Biden administration to be sitting in Vienna, as you pointed out, negotiating what they're going to do, and then hand over some more money like Obama did to the Iranians, who will then turn it over to the terrorists, who will then bomb as they are doing and attack the Israelis. Why are we doing this? Why are we sitting with these Iranians in Vienna? Why are we engaging in these talks? Why are we allowing this to proliferate? I don't understand the stance that the United States has taken under Biden. Undermining the Abraham Accords, as you pointed out, which gave peace to the region and was a starting point for all these Arab countries and the Israelis to work together. We are undermining this and making no statements whatsoever about the terrorists that are the strong statements that we should be making of supporting the government of Israel, in my opinion.

Do we have the Robert Malley sound? We can play later on, so we'll play it when we come back. We've got a minute and a half now. But I want to get your thoughts, Wes and Harry, as well. This is really a horrible situation, and what I find just amazing, and actually it's unbelievable, but then it is believable, and that is people on the left, many of them are actually saying that this wouldn't be happening if Israel were not provoking Hamas. That somehow this is Israel's fault, that their own people are being attacked and killed and wounded by a terror group. What is Israel supposed to do? And at this point, Jordan, what we're witnessing is Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran, all of the US enemies and Israel's enemies are coordinating their actions, and that is a grave thing. Harry, we'll get your thoughts when we come back. We'll play some for Robert Malley, who is the lead US envoy to Iran, not just an academic, but speaks on behalf of the Biden administration.

Shocking what he had to say about Hezbollah and Hamas hasn't changed those thoughts, and the idea, again, that they think they can negotiate with them, too. That they're not just terror regimes, like the Iranian regime, like Hamas and Hezbollah, but that they're somehow rational, and that you can deal with them. So we're talking about all that, we come back, and we'll start taking your phone calls. People that are on the line, we're going to get to those 1-800-684-3110. If you want to talk to us on air, that's 1-800-684-3110.

Right back, Sekulah. The challenges facing Americans are substantial. At a time when our values, our freedoms, our constitutional rights are under attack, it's more important than ever to stand with the American Center for Law and Justice. For decades now, the ACLJ has been on the front lines, protecting your freedoms, defending your rights, in courts, in Congress, and in the public arena.

And we have an exceptional track record of success. But here's the bottom line, we could not do our work without your support. We remain committed to protecting your religious and constitutional freedoms.

That remains our top priority, especially now, during these challenging times. The American Center for Law and Justice is on your side. If you're already a member, thank you. And if you're not, well, this is the perfect time to stand with us at ACLJ.org, where you can learn more about our life-changing work.

Become a member today. ACLJ.org. Only when a society can agree that the most vulnerable and voiceless deserve to be protected is there any hope for that culture to survive. And that's exactly what you are saying when you stand with the American Center for Law and Justice to defend the right to life. We've created a free, powerful publication offering a panoramic view of the ACLJ's battle for the unborn.

It's called Mission Life. It will show you how you are personally impacting the pro-life battle through your support. And the publication includes a look at all major ACLJ pro-life cases, how we're fighting for the rights of pro-life activists, the ramifications of Roe v. Wade 40 years later, play on parenthood's role in the abortion industry, and what Obamacare means to the pro-life movement. Discover the many ways your membership with the ACLJ is empowering the right to life. Request your free copy of Mission Life today online at ACLJ.org slash gift.

Welcome back to Sekulow. I do want to get Harry's thoughts on this and then we're going to get to your phone calls. 1-800-684-3110.

That's 1-800-684-3110. Harry, just your thoughts too. I mean, we heard from Senator Lankford about the pressure that is having to come from Congress to the Biden administration to say, knock it off with Iran in the middle of this. It shows some support for Israel. It is not as easy to see that bipartisan support anymore.

Absolutely not. And I think much of this can be laid at the feet of the Biden administration. Imagine the Biden administration officials. They continue to negotiate with the world's leading sponsor of terror while rockets fall in Israel.

This demonstrates, in my view, beyond question, that in the age of covid-19, incompetence and spinelessness have become a transmissible virus. Now, rockets, of course, are coming from Hezbollah in Lebanon, in addition to Hamas. In reality, of course, these rockets are coming from Iran. As we now know, Palestinian Islamic Jihad official, Ramaz al-Halabi, admits that virtually everyone in the world knows. Except, of course, members of the Biden administration.

Ramaz al-Halabi openly admits that rockets that they use to pound Tel Aviv, their food, their money, it all comes from Iran. But nonetheless, Biden administration officials apparently cannot recognize what is right in front of their own eyes. So I think, as I've said before, the Biden administration continues to take its marching orders from the intellectual heirs of Neville Chamberlain and continues to recognize the lesson of history, which is peace through strength rather than peace through fecklessness.

And so I think that's the problem. Yeah, let's go to Alan in New York. Alan, thanks for holding on. You're on the air. Jordan, great guests and great panel, as always.

Thank you. So I'll get to my point very quickly. In your last segment, you said about getting the truth out there. So as you know, Palestinian Media Watch monitors everything that gets said in Gaza and in the Ramallah. And they have hundreds of quotes that the Palestinians consider all of Israel to be occupied Palestine. Once that is ingrained into this country, the Biden administration and Democrats will have to end this whole nonsense about reestablishing relations with the P.A.

because it's fruitless. Second, really quick point. We have to change our message from Israel has a right to defend itself to Israel has a moral obligation to defend its country and crush its enemies. Permission to defend yourself.

That's not a big deal. Israel must have the green light to do whatever it takes to defend the integrity of their country once and for all. Yeah, absolutely, Alan. You know, you talk about the Palestinian Media Watch.

There's groups like Memory as well. And, you know, one thing they've got on Palestinian Media Watch right now, and it's in direct contrast to what you'll hear from the liberal leaders, which is a growing voice, unfortunately, in Washington, D.C., and inside the Democrat Party specifically. But you'll you see these Palestinians on TV talking about how the Israelis you see those towers come down in Gaza and it looks like, wow, that's a massive conflict.

And it is I mean, you know, if you're dropping bombs and taking down towers, it's a it's a massive explosion. But what they don't tell you on any really in any of the media is that Israel gives a warning. Before those attacks to the civilians, tells them to leave, tells them that building is being targeted, even though that might give Hamas time to also get out of the area. They tell they actually warn civilians. I mean, they take as much as they can do to protect Palestinians while they're engaged in conflict. And that message just doesn't get out. Instead, you hear people like Rashida Tlaib, a congresswoman from Michigan calling right now for the boycott, divestment and sanctioning of Israel.

Take a listen. Meanwhile, Palestinians rights to nonviolent resistance have been curtailed and even criminalized. Our party leaders have spoken forcefully against BDS, calling its proponents anti-Semitic, despite the same tactics being critically critical to ending the South African apartheid mere decades ago. What we are telling Palestinians fighting apartheid is the same thing being told to my black neighbors and Americans throughout that are fighting against police brutality here. So this is again, it is the radical left elements.

Harry, we see these radical left elements. They are trying to take this issue, which they have done at the academic level, but throw it into the basket of everything else. You know, if you're supporting Black Lives Matter, you also need to be supporting Palestinians. And this is like, you know, apartheid.

Yes, Rashida Tlaib is massively confused. If you have ever gone to South Africa, if you've ever studied South African history, you recognize that there is a clear and unmistakable difference between South African apartheid, which basically came into being around the 1920s, but officially came into being around 1948. That particular program effectively excluded people on the basis of race and ethnicity. In Israel today, Arabs can vote. Arabs can participate in the economy. They can earn money.

They can operate businesses. So Rashida Tlaib is massively confused, as I have suggested earlier, but her attempt to draw a moral equivalency between Israel's defense of its country from aggressors who are coming from abroad. That attempt, in my judgment, is nothing less than a moral atrocity. And it signifies that the days of infamy are upon us. It recalls Michael Welbeck's French book submission, where he explains how the French people might willingly submit to domination and control by Islam in the future. That is precisely the goal that is in place in Hamas and in Hezbollah.

Make no mistake about it. And so I would urge Rashida Tlaib to actually read her history. I can't believe that she stood up in the Congress of the United States with all that's going on and talked about Palestinian nonviolent resistance. That is an insult to every intelligent American.

Here's the thing also. Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran, they are perceiving a change in attitude in the United States administration. They're perceiving it as weakness. And one of the most revealing things about what's going on, you would think that if they were serious about peace, if they were even serious about a two-state solution, they would see the kinder, more supportive attitude of the Biden administration. And they would say to themselves, now is our chance. We can achieve statehood. We can achieve peace. I'm not saying that's a good thing, but that they would normally be thinking that way.

But no, no, no. In light of this more supportive, permissive attitude of the U.S. administration, what is their response to that? Let's attack Israel and kill Jews. Because in the Hamas charter, that's what it calls for. I read through it this morning just to refresh my memory.

It literally calls not only for the destruction of the state of Israel, the Hamas charter calls for the individual killing of Jews. Let's go to Ray in Maryland online too. Hey Ray, welcome to Sekulow. You're on the air.

Yes, I just want to say my two piece quickly. I'm a bit disappointed with the station as a Christian station. I think it should be more work towards bringing people together. And we have to keep in mind that the Palestinians and the Israelis are from the children of Abraham. They all go back to Abraham.

I'm just going to jump right here, Ray. There's a conflict going on. So you have to choose sides. I mean, you do. Especially as a country, as a nation, we have to decide are we going to continue to stay with our ally or terrorist. Do you want Palestinians to be able to live in peace, to be able to have their own homeland? Of course you do.

We've gone through that, Andy, over and over and over again. They will not accept any peace deals. They are, they are actively, these population groups, putting terrorists in charge of their life.

Yeah, I want to say something to raise it. We're all children of Abraham and there's no doubt about it. If you read scripture, we're all children of Abraham, whether you're Arabs or Jews, that that's true. What do you think President Trump was doing when he brokered the deal known as the Abraham Accords? He was doing exactly that. To bring both sides together to the table, to provide for peace in the Middle East by bringing that common root of generational notoriety that exists for the prophet Abraham together.

That's exactly what he was trying to do. And that is what Biden is trying to undo by saying, by refusing to come out against these terrorists funded by Iran in Hamas, which is a terrorist organization. You cannot have peace among the brothers unless you realize that you cannot have provocations unanswered. The Israelis have a right to defend themselves.

They are doing that. They are the children of Abraham. So are those in the Hamas organization, but they need to wake up to realize that Abraham was a prophet of peace and not of war. I mean, this is why, this is not the time to say, let's all come together Kumbaya.

This is not the moment. It's not reality in the region. There has been great efforts toward peace that Abraham Accords to Andy was just talking about. But when it comes to the Palestinians and the Israelis, you can't just assume this is all going to be a peace. You've got to take sides.

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Become a member today. ACLJ.org. I want to contrast this because this is the morons we have running our country right now. Robert Malley, you can thank him for the first JCPOA, which was two pages of bullet points. It looked like something your high school student put together.

Not even. If you had a high school student saying draft a treaty, I think they would have been able to come up with something more for them. I think it's funny font, it's bullet points, and that was the agreed-to, again, the joint plan of agreement. It was not a real treaty, but he's now the back, and he's the lead envoy from the United States to Iran. I want you to listen to what he had to say about Hezbollah and Hamas. People try to always differentiate between these two. He didn't. He talked about them in the same breath, the same way.

Take a listen. Hezbollah and Hamas, the two most prominent groups, although the Sadrists in Iraq, also fall in that category. It's a mistake to only think of them in terms of their terrorist violence dimension, their social political movements, probably the most rooted movements in their respective societies. Hamas, not a majority among Palestinians by any means, but very deeply rooted.

It has deep loyalty. It has a charity organization, a social branch. Okay, so when that guy is leading your negotiation efforts for Iran, and he recognizes their terrorist aspects, but they've got all these other things. You can academically study how these groups get support by handouts and by trying to conduct, but even actual charity is not what you would call it.

I mean, it is a way, in a sense, of buying off the population who lives under the terror because of these groups. Inside their own charter, this is from Hamas itself, quoting it directly, quote, the day of judgment will not come until Muslims fight the Jews, killing the Jews, when the Jew will hide behind stones and trees. The stones and trees will say, oh Muslims, oh Abdullah, there's a Jew behind me. Come and kill him.

Only the Garchid tree would not do that because it's one of the trees of the Jews. This is inside their charter, but we have leaders like Robert Malley. These are the lead voices for the United States, and it is why I think right now, in this week of where we've seen the conflict enrage again, the Biden administration seems just kind of, they're still going along in Vienna trying to negotiate a nuclear deal. Yeah, 330 million Americans, and you pick Robert Malley as the chief negotiator, a guy who doesn't understand history, who does not, obviously has never read a history book and who's focusing upon the social and the charitable works of terrorist organizations. What do you think he's going to do at the negotiating table but succumb to whatever they want? He's going to give them the money. He's going to give them the means to do what they're doing by funding Hamas's efforts against Israel via the Gaza Strip. These are the kinds of things that someone who is ignorant of history and ignorant of the region is doing, and we are putting him as the chief negotiator and envoy to Iran.

Shame on the Biden administration for their ineptitude yet again. You know, Thanh, we talked about this with Senator Lankford as well, and it's this idea that the American people we know support Israel. We know there is this new, gaining some steam in the radical left, but the radical left has always been there. They weren't always elected to Congress, Thanh, but they were always there, and this was always one of their causes. Now they have gotten some younger members of Congress, the squad specifically, to take on this position.

But it's obviously, they're wielding enough influence to make the Biden administration think twice before obviously coming out and kind of showing the support America has for Israel so that it doesn't fall on the citizens to have to do that. Jordan, here's the thing. If I'm a really nice guy except for the fact that I'm trying to kill you, you don't really care that much if I'm an otherwise nice guy.

You only care about the fact that I'm trying to kill you, and it's right to focus on that fact. Here's the thing. I do agree with Senator Lankford. I know Senator Coons as well. I know him to be a genuine supporter of Israel, and I do think that that is the vast majority of the United States Senate and the United States House. But Jordan, I really don't think there's another way to describe it other than that the Biden administration is being held hostage by that smaller radical view, because if that weren't the case, Jordan, look, there is something that could be done through both the administration and through the House and the Senate. You could put those sanctions back on.

You could reinsert the maximum pressure campaign. So, Jordan, I think Senator Lankford is correct. The vast majority support Israel, but it is that radical minority. It may be smaller, but it's very loud, and Jordan, they are holding the Biden administration hostage. And I think Joe in Colorado, he's got the question that they had for us, and I'll let Joe ask it, and welcome to the show, Joe. You're on the air. Thank you.

This is Joe from Colorado. My question is, we know the Biden administration is not going to support Israel, no matter what. That is extremely obvious. And it's up to the American people to do something, but what can the government do? Are we as American citizens being held hostage, and don't they realize eventually Hamas and Iran is going to come after us and try to destroy us? And they already do.

In the region, they target U.S. troops, they target U.S. assets, so that already happens in the region, and thankfully, they have not been able to carry out attacks here in the United States. That doesn't mean they haven't tried. The idea is this.

Are we being held hostage by our own government? I mean, the idea is that we have got to, as Senator Lankford said, as Secretary Pompeo said, we've got to be the voice of the country because this administration is, again, I've said it a number of times in this broadcast, they have created a void and a vacuum. They really have, Jordan.

Look, I would just give you a very specific example here. We read this on the broadcast as a positive a couple of days ago. Congressman Gregory Meeks said Hamas's attacks into Israel are terrorism.

Plain and simple, it must stop immediately. Kudos to him for saying it, Jordan. He's absolutely correct.

But you know what? He needs to go co-sponsor the Maximum Pressure Act that Secretary Pompeo has been asking the House and the Senate to pass because that would tell the rest of the world that we're going to back up our words with actions. I'm glad the American people are with Israel. I'm glad that a vast majority of the members of the House and the Senate are also for Israel because that support spills over to them and their voters want them to be. But Jordan, we have to require more than that because the status quo at this moment is getting rockets lobbed into Israel.

That can't stand. Secretary Pompeo, he was on our broadcast earlier, he just tweeted, a weak foreign policy emboldens terrorists and makes the world less safe. America's leaders must be clear. We stand unequivocally with our ally and friend Israel.

We didn't see this under the Trump administration, Andy. We saw unbelievable peace being made. We saw the recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

And yeah, there are a few rockets, I mean a handful of rockets fired off, but no massive conflicts. It was a time of peace, a time of prosperity in the Middle East and new beginnings, new relationships, new economic developments, new tourism. And now with this kind of weak leadership, we see how quickly it devolves. If you read history, you understand that first of all, Islam has become and is a political party. It's not a religion anymore.

It's a political party and it advocates politics and it advocates the destruction of Israel. If you've read history, you understand that there is only one thing that the Islamic terrorists understand and that is force and power. That's what they understand. Absent that, there is nothing that you can get through to them.

Force and power alone. With President Trump, that's what we had. We had a powerful leader who sent a clear message. With Biden, we have an effete, feeble, feckless, doted at the head of our government. And you see what that produces.

It's not just a talking point to attack the other political party. Conflicts arise. Peace deals fall apart. Bad negotiations move forward, like with Iran. So I think this is the moment, on this Friday, we need to take a stand. This conflict is not over.

You could obviously pray for peace, but also take a stand for who is right and the right side of this is Israel. We'll talk to you next time on Sekulow. Become a member today. ACLJ.org