by WorldTribune Staff, May 12, 2024 Contract With Our Readers
Soon after Joe Biden blurted out in an interview with CNN on Wednesday night that he had suspended military arms shipments to Israel and warned Israel against moving into the city center of Rafah, the White House was reportedly thinking of ways to unsay what the 81-year-old had said.
The Biden statement appeared to reverse longstanding U.S. policy of arming Israel against Iran-backed proxies labeled as terrorist organizations by the State Department. Such proxies include Hamas that conducted the murderous October 7, 2023 attack on Israel from Gaza.
“The bigger problem for Biden was that in his attempt to suck up to the pro-Hamas faction, he managed to anger a far larger contingent of Americans, of which polling shows the overwhelming majority support Israel in its ongoing conflict. Thus, the desperate walk back has begun,” Red State’s Bonchie wrote in a May 11 op-ed.
Israeli sources: US rethinks decision to halt arms shipments, looks for ways to resume deliveries; Possible solution: Shipping heavy bombs but not allowing Israel to use them in civilian areas of Rafah, @ynetalerts reports.
— Israel Radar (@IsraelRadar_com) May 11, 2024
During his massive rally in Wildwood, New Jersey on Saturday, Donald Trump slammed Biden:
“Crooked Joe has not just set our economy on fire, he has truly set the world on fire. If you want to know how weak and pathetic a president really is, I mean the things they do, just think about this. This week he announced that he will withhold shipping weapons to Israel as they fight to eradicate Hamas terrorists in Gaza. It was shocking to hear it, even while there are still American hostages being held by Hamas.”
Related: In new interview, Biden stands with Hamas in Israel’s war, May 9, 2024
Of the hostages remaining, there are still five Americans held by Hamas.
“They’re saying, October 7 never happened. You know they say that, and Biden has fallen for it. Crooked Joe’s action is one of the worst betrayals of an American ally in the history of our country,” Trump added. “I support Israel’s right to win its war on terror. Is that okay? I don’t know. I don’t know if that’s good or bad politically. I don’t care. I mean, you got to do what’s right. It was a terrible attack. October 7 was a terrible attack.”
A poll from the Pew Research Center in March showed that 58 percent of Americans felt that Israel’s reasons for fighting against Hamas were justified.
Bonchie added: “Now what? My general feeling is that it’s too late. Biden’s political fortunes continue to collapse precisely because he’s an indecisive, weak leader whose first instinct is to capitulate to crying Islamists. That he’s now trying to do a gentle backtrack is not fooling anyone. He’s typecasted at this point, and he better hope Israel eliminates Hamas sooner rather than later because if this festers too much longer, it’s only going to get worse for him.”