The Shift: The Biden administration’s pathetic public statements on Gaza

The carnage in Gaza continues and the administration’s public comments on the issue become more and more ridiculous.

Let’s start with an exchange between the AP’s Matt Lee and State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller.

At a briefing Lee brought up Israel’s destruction of Al-Israa University, which is south of Gaza City. According to the school’s Facebook page, the IDF seized the campus months ago and converted it into a base where they interrogated Palestinians. Then they blew it up.

LEE: I don’t know if you’ve seen the video. It’s pretty widely available.

MILLER: I have seen the video.

LEE: I mean, it looks like a controlled demolition. It looks like what we do here in this country when we’re taking down an old hotel or a stadium. And you have nothing to say? Nothing to say about this? I mean, to do that kind of an explosion, you need to be in there. You have to put the explosives down. And it takes a lot of planning and preparation to do. And if there was a threat from this particular facility, they wouldn’t have been able to do it.

MILLER: So, I have seen the video. I can tell you that it is something we are raising with the government of Israel, as we do often–

LEE: Well, raising as what?

MILLER: To ask questions and find out what the underlying situation is, as we often do when we see reports of this nature. But I’m not able to characterize the actual facts on the ground before hearing that.

LEE: Yeah, but you saw the video.

MILLER: I did see the video. I don’t know–

LEE: It looks like, you know, a bridge being imploded.

MILLER: I don’t know what was under that building. I don’t know what was inside–

LEE: Yeah, but it doesn’t matter what was under the building because they obviously got in there to put the explosives down to do it in a way that they did.

MILLER: Again, I’m glad you have factual certainty about it. I just, I just–

LEE: I don’t. All I have is what I saw in the video and I think you guys saw it too.

MILLER: We did see it and I can say that we have raised it with the government of Israel.

LEE: It’s not troubling to you?

MILLER: We are always troubled by the, by the, by any degradation of civilian infrastructure in Gaza. But without knowing the actual underlying circumstances, I’m a little hesitant, I think, for reasons that should be understandable to pass definitive judgment on it from this podium.

Not only is Miller a “little hesitant” to pass judgement on a school being flattened, he’s also implying that the university’s administration is lying. Are we supposed to believe that Israeli troops converted the school into military barracks with some sort of Hamas tunnel underneath it?

At the next day’s briefing Al Quds’ Said Arikat revisited the subject. He pointed out that Israel has actually destroyed multiple universities. He wanted to know if the administration viewed the school as a legitimate target.

Miller returned to the idea that fighters could be under the school, or maybe even somehow in the school. Of course there’s absolutely no evidence to suggest there were fighters anywhere near the structure, which Arikat was quick to point out. He also told Miller that, if Biden is really telling Israel to limit its destruction, it’s certainly not taking the instruction.

Miller: So, I can’t speak to this individual action. I don’t have independent information to verify that. But I can say that we continue to urge Israel to avoid damage to critical infrastructure – that would, of course, include universities – and to ensure the protection of humanitarian and medical sites. That has been something we have urged from the outset of this conflict. I will give the – make the point that I always make, that it is very difficult – and again, I’m not talking about this particular site, because I don’t have information about this particular site – but it is always difficult when you see Hamas use those civilian sites to hide its fighters, to launch attacks on Israel. But it doesn’t change the burden that Israel has to comply with international humanitarian law and avoid strikes, avoid military action against humanitarian infrastructure.

Arikat: But there seems to be no evidence that there were any fighters – in fact, any presence of – any kind of military presence in the university itself. But that – I mean, we’ve seen – I mean, you keep saying that you want Israel not to destroy the infrastructure. Yet we have seen almost a total destruction of all infrastructure, including schools, hospitals, roads, cemeteries. They just – they excavated a cemetery for instance and took bodies, whatever. I mean, this is not exactly – tell us in any way that the Government of Israel is really paying heed to what you tell them, in any way, by any measure. They’re not listening to you.

Miller: So, we have seen them take some steps to add civilian infrastructure to deconfliction sites. There are other things that we have urged them to do that we want them to do better on. It is an ongoing conversation between our two governments and something that the Secretary spoke directly with the leadership of Israel in his trip last week. But again, there is also this problem that Hamas does continue to hide in and under civilian infrastructure. So, when you see a strike against any one civilian – piece of civilian infrastructure, to assess the validity of that strike you have to know what it is that was there, and we don’t always know that when – or at least I don’t know that when I’m speaking from here.

This is a reoccurring bit with the State Department’s spokespeople. When asked a specific question about something awful that Israel did, they say that the U.S. government is talking to Israeli leaders about the issue. The trick here is that they never actually seem to get a response. They’re allegedly having a perpetual conversation about places Israel has bombed and people its killed, but they never report back with any answers. In fact, they can’t talk about it because the person tasked with relaying information to reporters consistently says that they don’t have all the facts.

Miller tells Lee that the administration raising the issue of Al-Israa University with Israel. They’re asking questions and seeking answers. The next day he still can’t comment on the issue because he doesn’t have any information. Does the Biden team send their inquiries to Israel’s leaders via postcard?

Let’s move onto a White House press conference from last Friday.

NSC Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby was asked about whether Biden would consider conditioning military aid in an effort to reduce deaths in Gaza.

According to Kirby, the current strategy of giving Israel billions in weapons and allowing them to do virtually anything they want is working just fine.

“We believe that the approach that we’re taking right now has had results,” said Kirby. “And we’re going to continue that approach, which is, obviously, making sure that Israel has the capabilities it needs, and that continues.  But also urging them at every turn to be more precise, more targeted, more deliberate with respect to civilian harm; urging an increase in humanitarian aid and assistance; and of course, trying to get another humanitarian pause in place so we can do a hostage deal.”
 
He’s not wrong when he says this approach has had results. Last week it was announced that the Gaza death toll had soared beyond 25,000.

Later in the press conference Kirby was asked about Mexico and Chile requesting he International Criminal Court to investigate crimes against civilians committed by Israel and Hamas.

He told the reporter that Israel has not committed any war crimes.

Finally, let’s turn to the man himself.

Last weekend Israeli Prime Minister publicly rejected the idea of a Palestinian state, shortly after talking to President Joe Biden about the future of Gaza.

“I will not compromise on full Israeli security control over all the territory west of Jordan – and this is contrary to a Palestinian state,” Netanyahu tweeted.

Asked by reporters if a two-state solution was impossible under the Netanyahu regime, Biden claimed it wasn’t and that actually Netanyahu was actually receptive to the concept.

Well, he had me fooled.

J Street and DMFI

It’s been an interesting week for J Street and DMFI, two notable Democratic, pro-Israel lobbying groups.

Let’s start with J Street.

You might recall that back in October the liberal Zionist organization was threatening to withhold their endorsement from candidates who refused to back a bipartisan resolution pledging unfettered U.S. support for Israel’s attack on Gaza.

When confronted on this issue, the group freely admitted to it. “An important part of being in political partnership is ensuring that one’s core values are shared — especially in moments of crisis,” they told The Intercept at the time. “We have been reaching out to all of our endorsed candidates to let them know that for J Street, a pro-Israel, pro-peace, pro-democracy organization, signing on to the broad-based congressional resolution that condemns Hamas, and states support for the State and people of Israel, is a deeply important affirmation of one of our core values. We are urging our endorsed candidates and all Members of Congress to vote yes on this resolution if and when it is brought to a vote.”

Now let’s fast-forward roughly 100 days later. Over 25,000 Palestinians dead. Many more injured. Gaza decimated.

On Monday J Street sent its supporters an email declaring that it had finally come out in support of a ceasefire. “To paraphrase Ecclesiastes, there is a time for war, and a time for diplomacy,” it begins.

“I love liberals when they think constructively,” the late Alexander Cockburn used to say.

J Street says we’ve all seen enough suffering. “Israel had the unquestioned right to respond militarily,” it points out, but the time for war has “come to a close.”

“..We call for an immediate and dramatic surge in humanitarian assistance to the civilian population of Gaza – led by Israel and the United States – to address the horrific, unacceptable catastrophe there,” reads the statement. “The toll inflicted upon civilians in Gaza has been unbearably high, the suffering must stop now.”

What did J Street honestly think was going to happen to Gaza once Israel started annihilating the area in a sustained attack that they openly supported? The hostages haven’t been saved and Israel is certainly not more secure so how did any of this ever make sense, even by their own logic? Why is the catastrophe in Gaza suddenly “unacceptable” now? Why not after 100 deaths, or 500, or 1, 000, or 10,000?

“The war that began as perhaps the most justified war in the history of the State of Israel continues without clear political goals – and, unfortunately, also with the feeling that the safe return of the hostages is no longer a priority,” said J Street Executive Director Nadav Tamir.

“At the same time, we’ve witnessed an incomprehensible level of destruction and pain metered out on Palestinian civilians in Gaza,” he continued. “It’s been accompanied by truly disturbing, hate-filled rhetoric from members of the Netanyahu government calling for wanton violence and destruction against families in Gaza who had no connection to the crimes of Hamas.”

Again, what did J Street think was going to happen? Say what you want about AIPAC, but at least everyone understands their function. Can anyone explain the purpose of J Street going forward?

Next we turn to the Democratic Majority for Israel (DMFI). A group that consistently insists that Democratic voters are united in their love for Israel, but will never mention the country in any of the ads it bankrolls.

The group is very angry about an effort in New Hampshire, where progressive activists called on voters to write “ceasefire” on their ballots in the Democratic presidential primary. Biden isn’t even on the ballot as a result of new DNC rules, so the presidential votes here have virtually no bearing on anything.

Nonetheless, DMFI is so concerned with voters expressing their concern for a ceasefire that founder and president Mark Mellman has written New Hampshire’s Secretary of State a letter claiming that write-in votes are inconsistent with provisions in the state’s election laws. The group is urging New Hampshire to refrain from tallying the ceasefire votes.

This makes a lot of sense. The vast majority of Democratic voters support a ceasefire, despite DMFI’s claims. A successful write-in campaign will once again prove how support for Israel is rapidly declining within the party, regardless of what the lobbying groups say.

Odds & Ends

???? The Intercept: ‘AIPAC poured money into Rep. Mike Johnson’s campaign coffers after he advanced a $14 billion aid package for Israel as the newly minted speaker of the House‘

???? Columbia Spectator: ‘Protesters allegedly sprayed with hazardous chemical at pro-Palestinian rally, nearly two dozen report’

???? ‘Columbia University Apartheid Divest coalition statement on chemical skunk attack’

✊ The Service Employees International Union (SEIU), which represents almost 2 million workers across more than 100 occupations in the U.S. and Canada, called for a ceasefire on Monday. It’s the largest U.S. labor union yet to call for a ceasefire.

???????? Responsible Statecraft: ‘Congress forms caucus to aid Iranian ex-terror group’

⚕️ ‘The Hypocrisy Oath: The double standards of American health institutions on Gaza’

????️ In a segment on CBS’ Face The Nation a number of Michigan Democrats said they wouldn’t vote for Biden again, based on his policy in Gaza.

“I was a champion for Joe Biden until October 7th,” one voter explained. “I feel he’s disenfranchised us with his stance on Gaza. He’s not listening to us. We’re asking for a ceasefire. It’s a humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. Too many lives are being lost at this time.

“I was never a single issue voter. In fact, I used to argue with people not to be single issue voters, but for me, this is a deal breaker. Way too many lives have been lost. I think the vast majority of Muslims, Arab Americans, even progressives who — I define myself as a progressive. Many people I talk to in my circles are not voting for Joe Biden.”

????‍???? The Nation: ‘These Teachers Want the Largest Union in the Country to Rescind its Biden Endorsement Over Gaza’

???????? NBC News: ‘Biden interrupted by protesters more than a dozen times at campaign rally’

✉️ 14 civil rights and legal advocacy organizations, submitted a letter urging the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) to reject codifying the controversial International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) working definition of antisemitism into agency rules, policies, or decisions. 

“The codification of the distorted IHRA definition will only serve as a tool of repression that will intensify the anti-Palestinian racism that activists and students are currently experiencing across the country,” Palestine Legal Advocacy Manager Lina Assi told Mondoweiss over email. “The OCR must uphold its mandate to protect all students from discrimination and harassment, and not cave to the pressure to violate the constitutional rights of Palestinian, Arab, Muslim and allied students who are demanding an end to Israel’s genocidal campaign in Gaza.”

????️ Jacobin interviewed Layla Taha, a Lebanese American socialist running to represent the Metro Detroit area in Michigan’s state house. “How do you view your role as a candidate, and hopefully as a state representative, in building this movement for a cease-fire?,” she was asked. Here’s her response:

People are frustrated; we just need to get them in the movement with us. If I become a state representative, that’s a huge part of the job — engaging more folks and bringing more people in. Rashida does that super well, and I hope to emulate that. We need more people in the collective to make a louder roar.

First and foremost, it’s necessary to be outspoken. Martin Luther King Jr said, “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” This is a very uncomfortable moment, with a lot of people afraid to speak up for the people of Gaza and for Palestinians when they’ve been living under apartheid and oppression for generations — generations of statelessness. I witnessed it with my own eyes in Lebanon: generations of families born into refugee camps without opportunity.

MLK also said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” Maybe the war isn’t right here in front of our eyes, but it’s a serious problem if we sit idly by and allow a genocide to happen. We have to put pressure on the administration and the rest of our world leaders to do something. They have the power to stop it.

???? Electronic Intifada: ‘Colleges serve genocide by punishing campaigners for Palestine’

???? New Economist/YouGov poll on whether Israel is committing a genocide against Palestinians. 2020 Biden voets: 50% Yes – 20% No. 18 to 29 year olds: 49 – 24. 30 to 44 year olds: 43 – 22. Black Americans: 40 – 18.

???????? Massachusetts Democratic Rep. Stephen Lynch has endorsed a ceasefire.

❄️ The Minneapolis city council is set to pass a resolution calling for a ceasefire.

???????? Common Dreams: ‘Rights Coalition Calls for Israel Arms Embargo to End Gaza Carnage’

???????? Truthout: ‘St. Louis’s Ceasefire Resolution Is a Testament to Black-Palestinian Solidarity’

???? Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) has announced that he supports a lasting ceasefire in Gaza. IfNotNow Baltimore leader Dr. Zackary Berger released a statement on the development: “We’re glad that Senator Van Hollen has joined the movement for a lasting ceasefire, following months of meetings, calls, and protests from Maryland residents. IfNotNow was proud to join the historic coalition of 180+ Baltimore organizations for a rally at Sen. Van Hollen’s office to demand he call for a ceasefire. With over 25,000 Palestinians killed by Israel’s assault on Gaza, it is past time for Congress and President to push for a lasting ceasefire, hostage exchange, humanitarian aid, and a path to peace that ensures equality, justice, and a thriving future for all Palestinians and Israelis.”

???? More than 2,200 alumni from New York University (NYU) signed an open letter to the University’s leadership, demanding that the school support Palestinian human rights and end its complicity in Israeli apartheid.

“We must not, and cannot, allow our collective humanity to be conditional, for indeed, all life is sacred,” it reads. “At a time where university administration is pushing for conversation and dialogue, it is critical that you understand that our grievances are not with individual members of the NYU community, but with institutional policy at large. We recognize NYU’s commitment to social responsibility and its long history of advocating for human rights. Taking these steps will send a resounding message that NYU stands against any form of discrimination or oppression.”

???????? Craig Mokhiber was the Director of the New York Office of the UN’s High Commissioner of Human Rights before he resigned last October in response to Israel’s attack on Gaza. Mokhiber said the UN had failed in its mission to prevent a “textbook case of genocide.”

Mokhiber was on Law and Disorder radio recently, where he made a couple very interesting points.

He said he became aware of the fact the U.N. was holding back its criticisms of Israel last spring and “increasingly compromising its principles for expediency in matters of human rights.” That breach had grown so wide that it was interfering with the duty of the organization.

“I was speaking out publicly as I have on human rights violations in countries all across the world for three decades,” he explained. “I saw a trepidatious response coming out of the political offices of the U.N. that had grown increasingly afraid to speak out frankly on Israeli human rights violations because of fear of the blowback they would get form powerful western states like the United States and the U.K. but also from israel lobby groups that make your life a living hell when you dare to speak out about Israeli human rights violations. I was willing to have that discussion and to keep pressing counterparts in the U.N. to raise their voice and to not defer to the power and not defer to those smear campaigns. But then I was silenced.”

“I was instructed not to make any public statements on Palestine that had not been made already by the secretary general and the high commissioner for human rights,” he continued.  “That’s the first time that had ever happened to me in my entire career. Interestingly I was not given those instructions in any other situation outside of israel and Palestine.”

He also commented on the South African genocide case at the ICJ: “Israel is certainly on trial in that case. But the entire international system of international law and international institutions are also on trial. If things can get this bad to the point of a genocide and such a massive failure of international institutions, international law then that will be the end of this 75 year experiment with international law and God only knows what will come next.”

⚖️ Some big legal news. The Supreme Court is refusing to take up a lawsuit brought by the Jewish National Fund (JNF) and U.S. citizens who live in Israel against the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights for alleged support for terrorism.

“USCPR’s message is justice for all and an end to funding genocide. There’s no lawsuit in the world that can stop us from pushing our demands for human rights,” said US Campaign for Palestinian Rights Executive Director Ahmad Abuznaid. “We will remain focused on opposing Israel’s genocide of the Palestinian people and pursuing justice and freedom for the Palestinian people.”

✉️ This week Rep. Rashida Tlaib, along with Reps. Cori Bush, André Carson, Hank Johnson, and Summer Lee sent letters to President Biden and the U.S. Government Accountability Office(GAO) urging them to assess the State Department’s compliance with the Leahy Laws and President Biden’s own Conventional Arms Transfer in response to reports of Israel violating international law.

“We write today regarding your Administration’s ongoing weapons transfers to the Israeli government despite considerable evidence that these transfers are flagrantly violating American and international law and being used in the commission of war crimes,” reads the letter. “It is in this context that we were deeply dismayed and disturbed by comments by National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby on January 5, 2024, in which he stated “I’m not aware of any kind of formal assessment being done by the United States government to analyze the compliance with international law by our partner Israel.” We were further disturbed to learn from a report on January 18, 2024 that the State Department has allegedly systematically used special mechanisms to review and shield Israel from consequences under U.S. law when reviewing potential gross violations of human rights committed by Israeli forces that have Leahy Law implications.”

???????? Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) was attacked by pro-Israel outlets and voices after he introduced Norman Finkelstein during a New York panel on Gaza.

Bowman distanced himself from the author and scholar in response to the backlash. “I had seen a few interviews but was unaware of Norman Finkelstein’s completely reprehensible comments before this event,” the congressman tweeted. “And when he made comments on October 7th at this event, I strongly condemned his language and will always continue to do so. I apologize deeply to any of my friends and neighbors hurt by my comments and will continue to fight the scourge of antisemitism in our country and across the world.”

???? On Friday the Council on American-Islamic Relations’ (CAIR) Senior Litigation Attorney Justin Sadowsky is scheduled to deliver oral arguments as part of a lawsuit filed on behalf of the University of South Florida Students for Justice in Palestine, which Governor Ron DeSantis unconstitutionally ordered disbanded in the wake of Israel’s attack on Gaza.  

“The governor of Florida has not only attempted to kick Students for Justice in Palestine off campus, but he also threatened their members with expulsion and even criminal prosecution,” said Sadowsky in a statement. “We should all be steadfast in the face of such unconstitutional authoritarianism.”  

☘️ Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown wore a “Free Gaza” bracelet before a game against the Dallas Mavericks.

???? The Boston Globe: ‘They were arrested at a pro-Palestinian sit-in. Now, three UMass students aren’t allowed to study abroad’

Stay safe out there,

Michael