I will never forget that moment, in October 2022, when I entered the Oval Office. I had been sent to cover the meeting between Presidents Isaac Herzog and Joe Biden. The tired eyes of the tall man suddenly fixed on me.
A spark of light lit up in them, and a smile appeared on his face. Biden did not recognize me, but rather the kippa on my head. It was another manifestation of the strong affection he has toward the Jewish people. He has often declared, "You don't have to be Jewish to be a Zionist." So when he stood at the outset of the war in full force alongside Israel, I was not surprised. I had long known that he was with us from the bottom of his heart, and he indeed did not disappoint. "The brutality of Hamas – this bloodthirstiness – brings to mind the worst – the worst rampages of ISIS. This is terrorism. So, in this moment, we must be crystal clear: We stand with Israel. We stand with Israel," he said after the Oct. 7 attack.
In the first weeks of the war, Biden was clear as day. He came here, sent endless amounts of ammunition, provided Israel with a political protective umbrella, and gave moral support. "The victory of Ukraine and Israel is part of the national security of the United States," he said. But over the past several months, as the war continued, the clarity with which Biden stood by our side has gradually eroded. This could be a result of the presidential elections or advisors who are misleading him; America's right hand has helped Israel, while its left hand has increasingly put spoke in its wheels.
The erosion of support
It started with endless pressures to bring supplies into Gaza that aided Hamas. Then came the demand for recognition of a Palestinian state, meaning that we agree to give those who are the new Nazis the means to perpetrate such atrocities again. It continued with the imposition of unilateral sanctions on Israeli citizens intended to punish IDF units, the abandonment of Israel before the International Criminal Court in The Hague, and the turning of a blind eye to the rampage of anti-Israel hatred on campuses. Finally, in the current chapter, the US is sweet-talking Israel into ending the war before Hamas is destroyed.
This is akin to Mexico conquering Houston and Canada taking Vermont, but the world telling the US, "Stop with the nonsense, the threat is not really serious. Moreover, you must feed the murderers, acquiesce to their demands, and pay an enormous price for your people who were abducted." This is de facto the American administration's approach toward Israel, and it is unacceptable.
The differences between Minister Benny Gantz and Netanyahu on these issues are all but negligible. Gantz, too, is unwilling to say "Palestinian state," he does not support ending the war and opposes sanctions on Judea and Samaria. In other words, the administration's quiet strangulation affects Israel, not Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. And this is something even the staunchest supporters of the Democratic Party cannot accept.
Concerns from American Jewry
Key figures in American Jewry are also losing patience with the 46th president on Israel. True, last night he made a rhetorical correction when he said he does not forget Hamas' attack – but the question is how long he will maintain this support. Biden is also causing enormous damage to the United States. When he throws Israel under the bus, America's credibility is compromised. Once again, it is portrayed as a superpower that cannot be relied upon, which will push the countries of the region back into the arms of China, as already happened in the year before the war.
An equally severe suicidal trend can be seen in the domestic American forces pressing Biden to abandon Israel and want the destruction of America itself. They are, after all, erasing the core values of American democracy and dreaming of, as Hamas' ally Sheikh Raed Salah said "Prepare For The 'Day After America', Which Has Grown Old And Is About To Retire; Islam Will Enter The White House And Will Conquer Europe Through Da'wa" (translation courtesy of MEMRI).
So Biden's America is on a suicidal path, but that's its problem. The Jewish people still desire life and will not sit idly by in the face of abandonment. Or as Netanyahu said in the government, "We understand and are not fools. They (Hamas) want our surrender and their victory, and they will not get it." What can Netanyahu do if pushed against the wall? Not much. Only say that Biden's America abandoned Israel in a time of war. He does not want to get there, but America's weight is certainly felt in Jerusalem.
