(RepublicanPress.org) – On October 7, the Middle Eastern terrorist organization — Hamas — launched thousands of missiles upon Israel. The aggressors followed up that litany of surprise blasts with a coordinated attack by land, sea, and air. Reports from Aljazeera show over 5,500 people have been killed in the war so far, and thousands of others have been injured. Since the first attack from Hamas, the United States has made it clear that it stands with Israel. President Joe Biden has condemned the killing of innocent civilians on both sides. Still, at least one person in the administration was unhappy with the way the White House is handling the tense situation. In fact, he quit.
What Happened?
On October 18, now-former US Department of State Director Josh Paul wrote a letter of resignation, explaining that he was leaving his position because he does not believe the US should continue to provide “lethal assistance to Israel.” Paul said the United States could still do a lot of good, but it cannot talk out of both sides of its proverbial mouth. The former official said America can’t be “both against occupation and for it,” nor can it be both for and against freedom. Paul said the US can’t say it wants a “better world” while making contributions that make it worse.
While he commended Biden for committing $100 million in humanitarian aid for the civilians who live in Gaza and admitted to seeing the administration’s efforts to tone down the response of Israel, he explained that he worked in arms transfers. Given that, he couldn’t in good conscience support the rush to supply weapons to either side. He believes the US is being impulsive and possibly making some of the same mistakes it made in the past and is against the “blind support” of Israel. The former director also said he thinks Israel’s reaction to the Hamas attack is only going to make things worse in the region in the long run.
Responses to the Resignation
According to The New York Times, the response to his resignation letter has been largely positive from his former colleagues and congressional staff members. Paul said “a lot of people” are grappling with the same moral dilemma that he was facing regarding “current policy.” He’s been “quite moved” by the support and hopes to be an example to others that they, too, can stand up for their beliefs.
The White House has not formally responded to Mr. Paul’s departure.
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