Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., called President Donald Trump’s proposal to “take over” Gaza a “bold step” toward restoring peace in the region.
“Of course, the initial announcement yesterday, I think, was greeted with surprise by many, but cheered by, I think, people all around the world,” Johnson said during his weekly press conference on Wednesday.
“Why? Because that area is so dangerous, and he’s taking bold, decisive action to try to ensure the peace of that region.”
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Johnson also noted that conditions in Gaza needed to change in order to avoid another attack similar to Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas militants invaded southern Israel and killed over 1,000 people.
He stopped short of fully endorsing the action, however, and was later pressed again on whether he believed the U.S. should take control of Gaza.
“This is a bold, a decisive move. And I think you have to do something to eradicate the threat to Israel. Here’s the problem – if you leave Gaza in its current form, there’s always a risk of another Oct. 7. There’s always a risk of proxies of Iran, all these terrorist organizations whose stated, openly stated goal is to eliminate Israel as a state,” Johnson said.
“So it just makes sense to make the neighborhood there safer. I think that’s logical. I think it follows common sense.”
Trump told reporters, “The U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip,” during a press conference alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday.
“We’ll own it and be responsible for dismantling all the dangerous unexplored bombs and other weapons on the site,” he said.
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Trump said it would “create economic development that would supply unlimited numbers of jobs” and the U.S. would turn the war-torn region into the “Riviera of the Middle East.”
Johnson said he would discuss the matter during his own meeting with Netanyahu on Thursday.
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