Republican and Democratic officials weighed in on the campus protests in interviews Sunday

Republican and Democratic officials weighed in on the campus protests in interviews Sunday

Republican and Democratic officials used cable news interviews Sunday morning to address ongoing protests on college campuses against the war in Gaza.

Here are some recent statements:

Mitch Landrieu, national co-chairman of the Biden-Harris campaign and former mayor of New Orleans, insisted that there is “no place” for antisemitism or Islamophobia on college campuses.

Landrieu told CNN’s Jake Tapper that President Joe Biden is focusing on the “core principles” of what the US Constitution says about protected speech. “Everyone has the right to protest, but they have to protest peacefully,” he said.

Landrieu also responded to the warning of Sen. Bernie Sanders is free that what is happening in US colleges could be “Biden’s Vietnam,” saying Sanders’ statement is an “exaggeration” and that this is a different situation.

Former Republican Senator Ben Sasse, now president of the University of Florida, called on school officials across the country to “step up and mind their own business.”

Universities’ spring commencement ceremonies continue to be private as other schools grapple with canceling or modifying graduation events.

Sasse — whose appointment as president of the state’s flagship university drew criticism from students and faculty who opposed his conservative views and slammed his lack of relevant experience — said in an interview with Tapper that the university would affirm the right to free speech, but offset that by enforcing time limits, place and way.

“You can’t take over the whole university. People can’t spit on the police. You can’t block yourself in the building. You can’t disrupt other people’s commencements,” he said.
Republican Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina said that while he respects the right to peaceful protest, campus demonstrations are “too often non-peaceful.”

Scott also said on NBC that Biden had not condemned antisemitism enough and “radiated” his base with his response to the protests.

Scott said federal funding for colleges and universities is a “privilege” to consider as administrators choose how to respond to the turmoil.