Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) claimed the pro-Palestinian protests on campuses across the nation will be a central topic of debate in November’s election, and President Joe Biden has not risen to the occasion.
Cotton appeared on This Week on Sunday to react to what he referred to as Biden’s “late” call to condemn the extreme cases of protesters making antisemitic threats. Around 2,000 protesters were arrested on campuses during this past week’s demonstrations. Some were charged with misdemeanors, such as trespassing, while others stand accused of assaulting police officers.
“It was absolutely too late; it was two weeks after these pro-Hamas fanatics had taken over a lot of these campuses and set up these little Gazas,” Cotton said of Biden’s response. “Second, he didn’t specifically speak to what they’re saying and what they’re doing. They’re chanting ‘final solution’ or telling Jews to go back to where they came from. They’re spray painting buildings with vile, antisemitic hate. He said we shouldn’t have antisemitism, hate speech in the abstract, or islamophobia. Where are the encampments on campuses spreading islamophobia?”
Host Jonathan Karl attempted to switch their discussion to November’s election, but to Cotton, the two topics are intertwined.
“First off, Jon, what we’re talking about is 2024. One of the many reasons why Donald Trump is going to win this election is you’ve got democratic protesters out there putting a terrorist headdress on a statue of George Washington,” Cotton said. “Meanwhile, you have patriots, like these frat boys at UNC and around the country, who are defending the American flag, and Joe Biden refused for two weeks to come out and denounce it. That is the 2024 election.”
While Cotton is not up for reelection in 2024, he is backing Donald Trump. The senator refused to answer questions about possibly joining Trump’s ticket as vice president.
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Others on Trump’s running mate list include Sens. JD Vance (R-OH), Tim Scott (R-SC), Govs. Kristi Noem (R-SD), Ron DeSantis (R-FL), Greg Abbott (R-TX), Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL), former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, and former GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.
Sens. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Rick Scott (R-FL), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), and others have called for the end to funding for universities that have not done enough to condemn student protesters.
