Editors at the Washington Examiner criticize the president’s inexcusable approach toward Israel’s war against Hamas.
Days after seeking to appease the Hamas-sympathizer wing of the Democratic Party with promises of a pier to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza, President Joe Biden stepped up his two-faced rhetoric against Israel, saying an attack on the city of Rafah would be a “red line” that the Israel Defense Forces must not cross.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) followed suit last week with a speech on the Senate floor calling for the ouster of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Biden and Schumer don’t understand that the Israeli people are united on the mission to eliminate the Hamas terrorist organization. This is not a partisan policy in the Jewish homeland but is recognized as a nonnegotiable existential need. Even if Schumer got his wish and Netanyahu suddenly disappeared, his chief political rival, Benny Gantz, backs extending the war to Rafah to kill Hamas, as do two-thirds of the Israeli people.
Most Americans are also unflinching in their support for Israel and its defense objectives. According to the latest Harvard poll, 82% of Americans support Israel over Hamas generally, 67% support a cease-fire only after all hostages are released and Hamas has been removed from power, and 63% support “Israel continuing its ground invasion into Southern Gaza to root out the final elements of Hamas.” There are few other policies that so unite Americans.
If Biden thinks building piers or calling for Netanyahu’s removal or cutting off ammunition will mollify his Israel critics, he is greatly mistaken. Those voting for “other” in Democratic primary contests and disrupting White House events will not be satisfied with half-measures. Only a “permanent” cease-fire that lets Hamas rebuild and reload for further atrocities will make Biden’s leftist Israeli critics happy.