President Joe Biden says he believes the Houthis are a “terrorist group,” a designation his administration lifted on the organization but is considering reapplying. 

“I think they are,” Biden said when asked if he was willing to call the Houthis a terrorist group. 

Biden later told reporters in Allentown, Pennsylvania, that it is irrelevant whether his administration formally makes that designation. He said the US and other nations would respond anyway to their attacks in the Red Sea.

"It’s irrelevant whether they’re designated," Biden said. "We’ve put together a group of nations that are going to say if they continue to act and behave as they do, we’ll respond," he added.

Questioned about some Democrats who said he should have sought Congressional approval for the strikes, Biden rejected their objections outright.

"They’re wrong and I sent up this morning when the strikes occurred exactly what happened," he said

Some background: In 2021, the Biden administration reversed the Trump administration's eleventh-hour decision to designate Yemen's Houthi rebels as a foreign terrorist organization. 

Earlier Friday, the White House reiterated it was reviewing a terror designation for the Houthis. John Kirby, the national security council spokesperson, said no decisions had been made and couldn’t provide a timeline for how long the review would take. 

This post was updated with more of Biden comments.