Rep. Jared Moskowitz criticizes Houthis

Rep. Jared Moskowitz used a September 1 House hearing on Houthi attacks in the Red Sea to make an argument that cut against the usual partisan script: the administration, he said, had not been aggressive enough in weakening the Iran-backed group. The Florida Democrat, newly installed as ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Middle East and North Africa Subcommittee, made the case in opening remarks and in questioning witness Nadwa Al-Dawsari of the Middle East Institute. House Republicans on the panel, led by Chairman Mike Lawler of New York, were also pressing for a harder line against the Houthis. The exchange circulated afterward in clipped video on social media. ### Which hearing was this, exactly? The House Foreign Affairs Committee scheduled a hearing titled “Countering Houthi Terrorism: Protecting U.S. Interests and Security in the Red Sea” for 10 a.m. on September 1 in Room 2172 of the Rayburn House Office Building. The hearing was listed under the Middle East and North Africa Subcommittee. Jared Moskowitz appeared there as ranking member of the subcommittee, a role he took on last week, according to Florida Politics and the committee’s membership page. (foreignaffairs.house.gov) Mike Lawler chaired the session for Republicans. ### What did Moskowitz actually say about the Houthis? Moskowitz’s opening statement, posted to YouTube under the title “Rep. (foreignaffairs.house.gov) Moskowitz: Houthis Declared a ‘Naval Blockade of Saudi Arabia,’” framed the Houthis as a widening regional threat, not only a danger to shipping. The video description identifies him as the subcommittee’s ranking member and says he opened the hearing on Houthi attacks on commercial shipping. (floridapolitics.com) A second clip, titled “‘Houthis Have Not Been Degraded’: Rep. Moskowitz Presses Analyst on Trump Yemen Policy,” shows the line that drew the most attention online. In that exchange, Moskowitz pressed Al-Dawsari on how to counter the Houthis and argued that the group had not been degraded by current U.S. policy. ### Why did the clip stand out? Ryan Grim highlighted the exchange in a post on X, according to the social briefing provided for this story, which said the clip had 226 likes and 42 reposts. (youtube.com) The same briefing described the moment as notable because Moskowitz, a Democrat, was criticizing the administration from a more hawkish position on Yemen policy. The clip also landed in a hearing where Republicans were making similar arguments about the need for stronger action. (youtube.com) Lawler’s opening statement, posted to YouTube, said Iran “cannot be permitted to arm terrorists who attack Americans.” ### Where do Lawler and Joe Wilson fit in? Mike Lawler was the subcommittee chairman at the September 1 hearing and opened the session with a warning about Iranian support for the Houthis. (youtube.com) The committee’s subcommittee page lists him as chairman of the Middle East and North Africa panel. Joe Wilson, a South Carolina Republican, also appeared in hearing video pressing witnesses on outside support for the Houthis. One posted clip identifies him as chairman while he questions a witness about Russian operatives in Sana’a aiding the group; committee materials otherwise identify Lawler as chairman of the subcommittee, suggesting Wilson was presiding over that portion or was identified differently in the posted clip. (youtube.com) ### What was the broader focus of the hearing? Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported that lawmakers and experts at the September 1 hearing examined the Houthis’ growing ties with Russia and China, alongside the group’s established backing from Iran. That report said the hearing renewed congressional focus on Red Sea shipping and on outside powers aiding the Yemeni militants. (youtube.com) The witness lineup and video clips posted after the hearing show lawmakers from both parties asking how to curb Houthi attacks and cut off the group’s financing, weapons supply and foreign support. Moskowitz’s intervention stood out because it argued that the current approach had failed to reduce the Houthis’ capabilities. ### What comes next? The September 1 hearing is now part of the House Foreign Affairs Committee’s public record, and the main video excerpts from Moskowitz, Lawler and Wilson remain available on YouTube. (rferl.org) The committee’s hearings page showed no upcoming Foreign Affairs hearings as of the latest listing, but the House Radio-TV Gallery continues to post the chamber’s daily hearing schedule. (youtube.com 1) (youtube.com 2)