Foreign policy has been a major sore spot for the Biden admin. That’s what makes this announcement staggering.
And what Joe Biden has said about the Israelis is raising everyone’s eyebrows.
According to the Biden administration, Israeli authorities were being “irresponsible” Tuesday when they suggested relocating Palestinians outside of the Gaza Strip.
The Times of Israel reports that Israeli Ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir of Finance and National Security proposed Monday that Palestinians leave Gaza voluntarily because Israel intends to keep a temporary security presence there after its war with Hamas concludes. Angry and insistent that Gaza “remain Palestinian land,” the Biden administration reacted on Tuesday, calling the remarks “inflammatory.”
“This rhetoric is inflammatory and irresponsible,” stated Matthew Miller, a spokesperson for the State Department, on Tuesday. “We have been told repeatedly and consistently by the Government of Israel, including by the Prime Minister, that such statements do not reflect the policy of the Israeli government. They should stop immediately.”
“We have been clear, consistent, and unequivocal that Gaza is Palestinian land and will remain Palestinian land,” Miller said. “That is the future we seek, in the interests of Israelis and Palestinians, the surrounding region, and the world.”
In response to a question on Tuesday, Gvir stated that although Israel regards the U.S. with admiration and refers to it as its “best friend,” Israel is “not another star on the American flag” and should prioritize the welfare of its own citizens.
Disagreements over Israel’s counteroffensive in Gaza and the region’s post-war trajectory have exacerbated preexisting tensions among the Biden administration and Israeli authorities. Despite the Biden administration’s best efforts, Israel continues to oppose the concept of the Palestinian Authority retaining authority over Gaza.
According to mutliple reports, President Joe Biden recently recalled an incident in which he essentially informed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he couldn’t agree “with a damn thing” that Netanyahu had said, adding to the long list of issues on which the two have differed.
During their most recent heated argument in December, over the Palestinian Authority, Biden suddenly informed Netanyahu that the “conversation is over” and then hung up the phone.
In recent weeks, the Biden administration has been changing the tune it’s singing regarding the ongoing conflict between Israel and Islamic terrorists in Palestine being lead by Hamas.
At the start of the Middle Eastern conflict in the wake of the October 7 attack on innocent Israeli citizens, Joe Biden and his administration were clear in their total support for Israel to eliminate all radical Islamic terrorist threats in the region, particularly Hamas.
That full-throated support has wavered as the Democrats have been facing immense pressure from amongst their own voting base that believes Palestine is completely innocent and that Israel is waging a type of genocidal war against the Palestinians.
Of course, the facts don’t line up with that narrative at all.
It’s abundantly clear that Israel is trying to target and destroy Hamas, and Hamas only. There is no intentional effort from Israeli officials to harm any innocent men, women, or children in Gaza.
There are debates about whether Israeli military officials are taking enough precautions and about whether there are more efficient military operations that they could be taking that would better eliminate Hamas while preserving more innocent lives.
One of the ways that Israel has been trying to preserve innocent lives is by giving a weeks-long heads up to individuals in the regions that they are planning attacks on Hamas in. Hamas terrorists, though, will force these innocent citizens to stay. In those instances, the blood is clearly on their hands.
The Biden administration rejecting Israel’s suggestions that Palestinians relocate outside of the Gaza strip just further complicates the matter.
It’s clear that the narrative about a supposed “Israeli genocide of Palestinians” has gotten to Biden and the rest of his administration. Now they are extremely sensitive to anything that sounds remotely anti-Palestinian, even if this suggestion by Israel is ultimately about trying to save lives.
The signals for Biden and the Democrats on this issue are crossed. The longer this conflict goes on, the worse it’s going to get for Joe Biden, especially as he seeks a second term as an incumbent with historically bad approval ratings.
Stay tuned to the DC Daily Journal.
