The United States launched another round of strikes on the Houthis on Friday (finally), taking out a radar station they used to target shipping. This was a welcome development after months of inaction by the Biden administration and the Houthis have ceased their attacks, at least for the moment. But Joe Biden’s attempts to brag about the delayed response during a rare address to the press were interrupted when reporters asked him if he considered the Houthis to be terrorists. At first, Biden appeared to give the correct, appropriate answer to the question, saying, “I think they are.” But then another journalist asked him how soon he planned on “designating them as such.” That’s when Biden appeared to brush off the question and said the idea was “irrelevant.” Isn’t he supposed to be the person in charge of maintaining that list? Technically it’s the Secretary of State who makes the official designation, but they don’t do it without consulting the President. (NY Post)

“Are you willing to call the Houthis a terrorist group, sir?” a journalist asked the 81-year-old commander in chief as he visited small businesses in Allentown, Pa.

“I think they are,” Biden replied.

In a subsequent exchange, Biden dismissed the need for an official designation following the joint US-UK bombardment, which Houthi leaders said killed five people. The offensive prompted a large anti-American rally in Yemen’s capital Sanaa.

“A few minutes ago at the coffee shop, you said you think the Houthis are a terrorist group. I’m wondering, how soon are you willing to designate them as such?” a wire reporter asked.

“It’s irrelevant whether we designate them,” Biden said.

Biden attempted to justify his dismissal of the importance of the terror watchlist by saying that we have “pieced together” a coalition and if the Houthis continue to “act and behave as they do” we will respond. That wasn’t much of an answer when you consider how slow we were to respond this time.

Biden’s refusal to address the issue ignores the importance of the official terrorist list. The State Department defines what the terrorist designation does and it’s not insignificant. Groups designated as Foreign Terror Organizations (FTOs) face a number of US and international restrictions. They are identified as having engaged in acts of terrorism as defined under federal law, including the Foreign Relations Act. Such a designation makes it illegal for any person to provide material support or resources to the FTO. It also makes any members of the group immediately inadmissible to the United States and removable as well. It further requires any US financial institution in control of funds belonging to the FTO to freeze those funds and report them to the Treasury Department.

Those are only the domestic effects that the designation carries. Such a listing also sends a message to our allies and neutral countries with which we do business. This has the effect of strangling the terrorist group of resources on the international stage. In the case of the Houthis, the effect is minimized because nearly all of their funding comes from Iran, who ignore the terror list designation. (Why Iran isn’t on the list yet remains a mystery.)

Clearly, Joe Biden just can’t help himself. He has been so desperate to cut a deal with Iran that he fears doing anything that might aggravate them further. For their part, they have shown no reluctance in arming the Houthis to the teeth and instructing them to attack Israeli interests and international shipping. They have long since effectively destroyed the country of Yemen, also with Iran’s approval and backing. The idea that someone would consider them anything other than terrorists is absurd. So I will still give Joe Biden credit for belatedly striking back at the rebels and hindering their attacks, but there is much more that can and should be done.