If polls are to be believed, US President Joe Biden is in dire straits.
The most recent one shows Biden to be 2 percentage points behind former President Donald Trump–a laughable place to compete against a twice-impeached opponent with four separate criminal charges, had botched the US’s COVID-19 response, and had left Washington in disgrace after a failed violent insurrection attempt.
It should be easy to argue against another Trump presidency. But if the other option is a genocide-enabling incumbent, then Americans are left to choose between two evils, with no realistic option third option because of their electoral system.
Under the Biden administration, the US has funded a genocide that has now killed over 30,000 Palestinians, with the number likely being a severe undercount. Biden has sent about USD14.5 billion worth of weapons to the Israel Defense Force (IDF), without explicit Congressional approval.
Most Americans disapprove of him as president and his handling of conflicts in the Middle East. Despite having no serious primary challengers, Biden is being challenged by a “vote uncommitted” campaign spearheaded by progressives who are protesting US funding of Israel’s war.
The uncommitted campaign will probably not derail Biden from securing his party’s renomination. But it does send a message to the incumbent president–that even his own party finds it hard to vote for him.
He knows this. With Trump surging ahead in the polls, Biden has been trying to backtrack to win back progressive voters. After rejecting calls for a ceasefire since the Israeli genocide escalated in October 2023, even vetoing a United Nations (UN) resolution calling for a ceasefire last month, Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday called for a “ceasefire of at least six weeks.”
Even if it seems long ago, Biden was once the preferred candidate of Palestinian-Americans, Arab Americans, Muslim-Americans, and progressives. Against Trump whose Islamophobic rhetoric led to policies like an immigration ban from Muslim-majority countries, Biden was seen as a breath of fresh air.
However, by sending weapons to Israel, Biden has betrayed the coalition of Palestinian-Americans, Arab-Americans, Muslim-Americans, and progressives that decisively delivered him the presidency four years ago. They now, understandably so, cannot support a president with the blood of thousands of Palestinians on his hands.
But despite the sudden shift in the White House’s messaging, Palestinian advocates remain doubtful. One can see the US administration’s sudden backtrack as a reaction to the growing challenge to Biden’s reelection bid, and some remain angry as the US continues to flood Israel with weapons, even while calling for a ceasefire.
Still, the fact that the Biden administration is attempting to backpedal is a welcome development. It shows that world leaders are starting to listen to the growing calls to stop the genocide, internationally and within their backyard. Public pressure, speaking out, and continuing to protest Israel’s war can influence those in power to make the right decisions.
But if Biden were serious about deescalation in the region, he would immediately stop selling weapons to the IDF, support the UN ceasefire resolution, and increase humanitarian aid to Gaza. Biden’s acknowledgment of the realpolitik surrounding Palestine and his reelection must translate to a tangible change in foreign policy.
The call of the world and the American electorate is clear—the genocide must stop. ●
