On Fox & Friends, former New York Sun columnist John Avlon discussed Jimmy Carter's planned meeting with a Hamas leader and claimed: "[T]his is going to really resurrect some of the old ghosts and bring [Sen. Barack] Obama's attitude of negotiating with all our enemies under further scrutiny." In fact, Obama has reportedly stated that his willingness to meet with international adversaries “does not include Hamas.”
Fox & Friends allowed Avlon to falsely suggest that Obama's “attitude of negotiating with all our enemies” includes Hamas
Written by Lily Yan
Published
During the April 14 edition of Fox News' Fox & Friends, former speechwriter for Rudy Giuliani and former New York Sun columnist John Avlon discussed former President Jimmy Carter's planned meeting with a Hamas leader and claimed, without challenge from co-hosts Andrew Napolitano and Gretchen Carlson: "[T]his is going to really resurrect some of the old ghosts and bring [Sen. Barack] Obama's attitude of negotiating with all our enemies under further scrutiny." In fact, Obama has reportedly stated that his willingness to meet with international adversaries “does not include Hamas.”
As Media Matters for America has noted, Reuters reported on March 3 that Obama “has said he would break with President George W. Bush's stance of declining to talk to some other international adversaries but that stance does not apply to Hamas.” According to Reuters, Obama said at a campaign stop in San Antonio: “You can't negotiate with somebody who does not recognize the right of a country to exist so I understand why Israel doesn't meet with Hamas.”
From the April 14 edition of Fox News' Fox & Friends:
NAPOLITANO: Hey, Larry, what's the potential problem, or problems, with Jimmy Carter sitting down with Hamas today?
LARRY EICHEL (Philadelphia Inquirer): Well, I'm not sure voters here in the Pennsylvania Democratic primary are sort of putting that all together. I mean, I know that Carter has said some kind words about Obama. He hasn't endorsed him. But I think, you know, people aren't quite putting that all together yet.
CARLSON: Mm-hmm. But immediately Obama disavowed himself from Carter's trip, John.
AVLON: Yeah, and this could be a real problem. I mean, this ties back into the idea that Democrats are generally maybe naive on foreign policy. And Jimmy Carter, you know, one of the statesmen of the party, man of peace, meeting with an avowed terrorist organization who've killed at least 10 Americans over the last decade and a half. So this is going to really resurrect some of the old ghosts and bring Obama's attitude of negotiating with all our enemies under further scrutiny.
NAPOLITANO: And of course --
CARLSON: And is it legal?