Biden is letting Trump outflank him on Gaza

A drastic change of course is needed, immediately.

To rare rounds of applause in the chamber, the U.N. Security Council passed a resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire and demanding the release of all hostages. Despite misinterpretation, deliberately from the U.S. ambassador to the UN and accidentally from some other parties, it is a binding ceasefire resolution. Fourteen member countries voted in favor, and none voted against. However, the U.S. did abstain, even after changing the language away from “permanent” ceasefire to “lasting” ceasefire.

People around the world are now praying that the ceasefire will commence shortly, for starters. Across the world there is a little glimmer of hope that this will bring Gaza closer to peace, and that there will indeed be a lasting ceasefire, beyond just a short reprieve from the slaughter for the rest of Ramadan.

Photo by Visual Karsa on Unsplash

Unfortunately there is already confusion around the resolution. For one, the language reads, "for the month of Ramadan respected by all parties leading to a lasting sustainable ceasefire," which is somewhat ambiguous. You would hope that the body is calling for a lasting peace with just as much clarity as it’s calling for a ceasefire for the next two weeks, but then why the distinction? Separating these two periods of time has introduced confusion.

Then, there has been some ambiguity about whether or not the resolution is binding, largely led by the insidious U.S. push to falsely claim that it isn’t. But, as Al Jazeera’s diplomatic editor James Bays says, “Resolutions of the Security Council are international law. They are always seen as binding on all the member states of the United Nations.” So we should be quick to dismiss most people who claim the resolution is non-binding in some way.

And yet we can predict with great accuracy what Israel’s reaction will be. Not just because we’ve seen what Israel has done consistently for five and a half months now, despite international outcry, but because Netanyahu has already threatened and rebuked the United States simply for abstaining from the Security Council vote. First, Netanyahu said that if the U.S. abstained from this vote, he would cancel an Israeli delegation to Washington. Now that the American representative on the Security Council has abstained, the delegation has indeed been canceled. 

This news comes on the heels of Democratic Senate Leader Chuck Schumer calling out Bibi, Biden approving of his speech, and increased speculation about a rift leading up to the U.S. abstention on the ceasefire vote. And yet, despite the endless leaks from the White House, and the slow inching away from Israel’s horrific actions, the U.S. didn’t vote for a ceasefire. Despite the shift in rhetoric, the bombs and arms keep flowing. And, despite wanting people to think the administration’s position on Israel has substantially changed, the State Department still finds the IDF to be in compliance with International law, a laughable statement contradicted by the International Court of Justice, among countless others.

Enter Donald Trump. In a new interview, Trump says that Israel must "finish up" the war in Gaza and tells Netanyahu, "You're losing a lot of the world.” It isn’t a particularly strong series of statements. He doesn’t call Israel's actions genocide or ethnic cleansing, he simply points out the obvious when he says that Israel has lost the support of the world. But he goes a step further than Biden is willing to go. He calls for the attack to be brought to an end. That rudimentary distinction is massive and reveals how Trump has now hopped through the opening left open by Biden’s refusal to tell Israel to stop the slaughter, to stop the attack on the people of Gaza.

We should be clear that Trump can say whatever he wants without enacting policy, unlike Biden. But we should be equally clear that there have been countless opportunities for Biden to lay down red lines for Netanyahu. There have been two prior Security Council votes, and untold shipments of weapons to Israel. For five and a half months the White House has quietly changed its rhetoric all the way from overt complicity to quiet and easily ignore-able admonitions. Never have they simply told Israel to stop. And never have they taken material action to check Bibi. Abstaining from a ceasefire vote is as far as the United States has gone under Biden. 

Photo by Mathias Reding on Unsplash

Now, Donald Trump can claim he is the candidate for peace in the Middle East. Regardless of whether or not he would follow through, Trump is now closer to the dominant position favored by public opinion, and can say that he’s advocating for what’s right.

For Democrats, the path is clear. It’s been clear. All efforts to make Biden do the right thing, demand peace, and cut off funding and weapons to Israel must be redoubled. Just like the uncommitted vote movement, anyone who wants Trump to lose should press Biden to do infinitely more to promote, or force, peace in Gaza. Anything short of that leaves a lane open for Trump to continue outflanking Biden on an issue that has become extremely important to crucial voters across the country.

Every elected Democrat from Joe Biden right through Congress should have been pushing for peace for months now. But there’s no use looking back, or in appealing to their altruism. I want to rant and shout at the vast majority of elected officials in D.C., and plenty of people seem to be tracking them down and doing that. Yet more than venting I want peace. I want Israel’s genocide in Gaza to end. So, to appeal to a politician you have to appeal to one thing: their self-interest.

And here is the crucial selfish motive: if you want to win, push for peace. Use the immense power at your disposal to coerce Israel to back down. The uncommitted campaign has already made the immense risk involved with continuing to support Israel’s genocide in Gaza clear. Now, Trump has made it even clearer. Everyone who doesn’t want to see Donald in the Oval Office again should urge Biden and the Democratic party to change course, rapidly and decisively. For countless reasons, from the altruistic to the selfish, every viable path points towards an immediate need to push hard for a permanent ceasefire, now.