Benjamin Netanyahu blasts Schumer, Biden over waning support for Israel: Focus should be bringing down Hamas

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a sharp rebuttal against Sen. Chuck Schumer, who called for new leadership in the Jewish state.

"I think Schumer's statements are wholly inappropriate. I think we're not a banana republic. The people of Israel will choose when they'll have elections, who they elect, and it's not something that will be foisted upon us," Netanyahu said on "Fox & Friends Weekend," Sunday.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., called on Israel to elect a new prime minister to replace Benjamin Netanyahu in order to move towards a lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians in the form of a two-state solution.

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The majority leader said he believed that "Prime Minister Netanyahu has lost his way by allowing his political survival to take the precedence over the best interests of Israel."

"It's wrong to try to replace the elected leaders of a sister democracy and a staunch American ally at any time, but especially during the time of war," the Israeli leader countered.

"Just imagine that, after 9/11, and when you're in the midst of fighting Al Qaeda, and winning... some Israeli would say, ‘oh, the right thing to do is not to have new elections in America or have President Bush resign.’ It's inappropriate. Shouldn't have been said. It's wrong."

In what was billed as a major speech on a two-state solution, Schumer said on the Senate floor on Thursday that Netanyahu was one of four obstacles to this solution. The other obstacles mentioned were Hamas and Palestinian supporters, "radical, right-wing" Israelis and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.

"I don't know why Sen.