this crisis and of course that is what happened. record number small businesses say they have open jobs they cannot fill. governors across america are having to take matters into their own hands and turn off these extra generous benefits. : : : montana, ohio, and west virginia, we have governors having to clean up this mess which at least one of their own senators actually voted for. the policies that we needed in march of 2020 are not the policies we need in may of 2021. that has been obvious to republicans, to economists, and to the american people. the center that my democratic friends here -- the sooner my call. the presiding officer: without objection.

mr. cotton: just four short months ago, hopes were running high in the middle east. isis was wiped off the map. the iran regime was in retreat. israel was forging historic peace deals with its neighbors. all along the way, the united states was instrumental in its progress, but in just a few months, the biden administration has dashed those hopes with a policy of weakness and appeasement. the forces of terror are again on the march. pillars of smoke and fire are rising from tel aviv and the holy city of jerusalem. the assault on israel by terrorist groups like hamas and palestinian islamic jihad is the latest and most concrete evidence yet the middle east is spiraling toward chaos. but instead of standing firm with israel, the biden

administration's policy of endless accommodation is fanning the flames of conflict. the president should show strength. instead, he's broadcasting indecision and weakness. our greatest ally in the middle east is under attack, yet the democratic party refuses to say we stand with israel. the night sky over the jewish state blazes with the star bursts of intercepted rockets and the biden administration only offers muted calls for restraint. where are the righteous denunciations of the terrorists responsible for these repeated, premeditated, and unprovoked attacks? attacks? pre-meditate s unprovoked attacks solidarity with israel, please. this administration from this democratic party, we cannot

get the president spokeswoman to say that the united states would help resupply munitions for our own. israel's life saving missile defense system, so this afternoon let me provide a little clarity that the president and his party appear incapable or unwilling to articulate the fault for the death and destruction in the streets of tel aviv, jerusalem, gaza, on thehe west bank by not with the israeli government, much less with israeli people. the belligerence in this conflict are not morally equivalent when often presented to enlightenment circles. but simply there are good guys and there are bad guys. israel seeks peace. terror groups seek death and destruction. hamas and palestinian jihad

are not legitimate state actors. they do not speak for the palestinian people and they do not care about them. these are terrorist organizations run by evil men who commit evil acts in pursuit of evil dreams of an evil ideology. they o purposely fire unguided rockets at civilian targets while they protect themselves using babies, hospitals, schools, and dupes in the media as shield. what cowards. attacking innocent civilians while they hide behind women. of course hamas and the islamic jihad do not act alone for the palestinian authority supports, encourages and funds terrorism in the form of so-called martyr tenants.

pigeons : : violence by refusing to violence by refusing to and type semitism in his schools and in the poverty as an award. [inaudible].co and we all know that the funds and they harmed the palestinian terrorist organizations, world's foremost supporter the islamic supporter of iran. everyonen' immigrants staged demonstrations with their fanatical support and scream and death to america. death to israel. the assault of israel today shows that there's chance are not idle threats. everyone are deadly serious about wiping the jewish estate off the map. that is why ron arms palestinian terrorists with some of its most

lethal weapons hamas' arsenal of 10000 rockets might as well have made and run stamp on the side. those of the villains of this conflict. let's not forget the heroes. setting read generously is this organized and slaughtered state of israel, our closest ally in the region. over the past week terrorists have fired approximately 3000 missiles and rockets in israel. in response, israel has defended itself with miracles. itga was carried out with precision air strikes against military targets and as always, israel has gone through extraordinary links to minimize civilian casualties. despite the terrorist best efforts to maximize and publicize any carnage.

while hamas in the islamic and islamic jihad are office buildings and apartments in schools . israel responds by hitting those sites but only after only after it warned the civilians allowing them to evacuate first. regrettably, these warnings allow the terrorist to escape but israel bears that cost because the value was innocent life. unlike kids terrorist enemies. you may have heard one recent example, last week is carried out an airstrike against the building is by hamas intelligence personnel. the building that also house the associated press. an hour before the airstrike on the israeli military called them and other civilians in a complex and warned them to depart.

this precaution once account allows the terrorist to escaped but also allowed at the aireporters and other civilianso vacate the premises before the airstrike occurred. as a result, no civilians died in hamas lost a terrorist haven. now any other country with any other military, and except i have to add. one would hear the restraint and the commitment to the laws of war. because as military as the idf, in the country of israel, and the pump but the people of the jews, they are widely condemned around the world. in the left, and in america. if you cut through the hysterics and hyperbole, you can see the truth clearly. one side 60 makes my carnage in the other, to minimize civilian casualties. besides, i must observe why the associated press sharing a

building it with them, surely these intrepid reporters knew who their neighbors were read they knowingly allow themselves to be used as human shields by a u.s. designated terrorist organization. in ap pull punches and declined to report for years on hamas' misdeeds. i submit to the ap that they had ioan uncomfortable questions to answer. and if anybody in his fellow journalists about israel's appropriate airstrike. we met two whiny reporters to make themselves the story the victim when terrorists are shooting missiles and innocent civilians. in any event the moral standing of the competing versus is

simple and clear our greatest and only democracy in the region, against an islamist, bureaucracy and his terrorist partners. most americans know which side they are on. i speak for them. when i say that we stand with israel and unfortunately, too many elected democrats have taken a different stance. members, so-called squad and representatives, call israel and state, and accused it of war crimes. remember, these are not obscured back interest many jim botero these representatives that the future printed and meanwhile 27 different doheny senators covered an immediate cease-fire to the conflict. even the democratic or later who

has long styled himself as israel's great defender has joined this moral equivalence. calling for an immediate cease-fire. and hear me clearly the hand wringing calls for cease-fire are to the hamas propaganda. both sides are not the same in this conflict. no matter what the democrats naïvely applied. if hamas puts out his weapon, would be peace. israel put down its weapons, there would be no israel. thankfully, israel's leadership is readily united and committed to victory. united states has responded to the terrorist onslaught with equal results. that means that we should get israel the time and space and resources to destroy hamas war

machine and protect its own people. we should also ensure that israel has a military hardware to whether this crisis. hamas may have as many as 10000 missiles, rockets and mortars held in reserve. and meanwhile, the works to the north with many times that arsenal. we should therefore, endeavor to restore that israel has more interceptors for iron dome that hamas has rockets to kill as an israeli's predict wherever and however that i've cut off aid until the palestinian authority until we can be absolutely sure another time the taxpayer money is being used to buy and build rockets or pay pensions or for the murderous terrorists and finally, the biden administration also immediately and is misguided flirtation with

bureaucrats in iran by recalling his chief negotiator in peace summer, rob malley from negotiation and. the biden administration reenters the failed iran nuclear agreement grants sanctions for relief to the regime in tehran in very short order. appeasement payoffs be converted into rockets aimed at israel as well as american troops throughout the region. while israel is under attack, we've heard plenty of talk anden mealy mouth statements from politicians. but in this moment of crisis, israel needs more than words. israel needs and deserves our full support to defend itself and its people into a cheap