Former President Donald Trump spoke in Florida Wednesday, where he called Hezbollah, an Iran-backed militia in Lebanon, “very smart.”
The former president criticized intelligence agencies over their ability to keep information classified, saying, “Two nights ago I read all of Biden’s security people — can you imagine? — national defense people, and they said, ‘Gee, I hope Hezbollah doesn’t attack from the north because that’s the most vulnerable spot. I said wait a minute, you know Hezbollah’s very smart. They’re all very smart. The press doesn’t like when I say.”
Presidential candidate Ron DeSantis criticized this characterization of Hezbollah, and said in an X post, “Terrorists have murdered at least 1,200 Israelis and 22 Americans and are holding more hostage, so it is absurd that anyone, much less someone running for President, would choose now to attack our friend and ally, Israel, much less praise Hezbollah terrorists as ‘very smart.’ As President, I will stand with Israel and treat terrorists like the scum that they are.”
White House spokesperson Andrew Bates released a statement calling Trump’s comment “dangerous and unhinged.”
He said, “It’s completely lost on us why any American would ever praise an Iran-backed terrorist organization as ‘smart.’ Or have any objection to the United States warning terrorists not to attack Israel. Especially now as Israel is fighting back against one of the worst acts of mass murder in the country’s history.”
Mike Pence appeared on a New Hampshire radio show Thursday morning and said, “This is no time for any former president or any other American leader to be sending any message other than America stands with Israel.”
He continued, “Hezbollah aren’t smart, they’re evil. But the former president also said when Russia invaded Ukraine in a similar, unprovoked, unconscionable invasion a year-and-a-half ago, he said Vladimir Putin was a genius.”
On Friday on Truth Social, Trump said, “The attack on Israel would never have happened” if he had won the White House in 2020. “Iran was broken and talking, now they are rich and watching, waiting to make their move,” he said.
He also brought up the Abraham Accords, agreements signed during his administration that led to normalized relations between Israel and United Arab Emirates, and Israel and Bahrain.