(The Age, 10/1/2024)
Washington: US President Joe Biden says he has been quietly working to pressure the Israel government to “get out of Gaza,” telling protesters who disrupted a major campaign speech that he understands their passion for a ceasefire.
After months of growing dissent over his support of Israel, Biden came face-to-face with protesters in South Carolina as he gave an address designed to win back black voters ahead of this year’s election.
The president was only minutes into a speech focusing on the threat to democracy posed by Donald Trump when he was confronted by demonstrators who had been sitting in the middle of his chosen venue: the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, where a white supremacist killed nine people in 2015.
“The truth is under assault in America,” Biden said. “As a consequence, so is our freedom, our democracy, our very country because without truth, there’s no light, and without light, there is no path from this darkness.”
Several protesters immediately stood up as one of them yelled: “If you really care about the lives lost here, you should honour the lives lost and call for a ceasefire in Gaza!”
This was followed by chants of “Ceasefire Now! Ceasefire Now!” as security scrambled to get the demonstrators out of the venue.
In a bid to drown out the protests, the rest of the church began chanting: “Four more years! Four more years!” in support of the president.
Biden stayed calm during the commotion, before telling the audience: “Look folks, I understand the passion, and I’ve been quietly working with the Israeli government to get them to reduce and significantly get out of Gaza. I’m using all that I can to do that.”
This was met with applause, and one woman responded by shouting: “You’re a good man!”
The confrontation underscores the challenge Biden faces after initially giving his full-throated support to Israel in the wake of Hamas’ brutal invasion on October 7.
Since then, as the death toll of innocent children and civilians has continued to rise, Biden has come under significant pressure to change his stance, as progressives, Muslim Americans, and many young people threaten to abandon him in what is expected to be a hard-fought election contest this year.
Last year, for instance, Democratic congresswoman Rashida Tlaib issued an ominous warning for both the president and her party: “Joe Biden supported the genocide of the Palestinian people. The American people won’t forget”.
This was soon followed by the resignation of a State Department official whose bureau oversees arms transfers to foreign countries – including Israel.
And this week, in yet another example of the growing dissent the president faces, a group of former White House interns signed an open letter urging the administration to push for a ceasefire and accusing the president of having “betrayed” his promise to pursue equality and justice by supporting Israel’s ongoing bombardment.
While the issue has been highly contentious for Biden, who is now referred to at pro-Palestinian protests as “Genocide Joe”, he has rarely come face-to-face with angry demonstrators demanding a ceasefire.
After the interruption, Biden continued with his planned speech, which comes as Trump edges closer towards winning the Republican nomination to run for the White House again.
But Biden used his speech to attack the former president, who faces four trials – including two relating to Trump’s attempt to subvert the 2020 election.
One of those is in Georgia, where Trump on Monday lodged an appeal to stop the trial, arguing he should be immune from prosecution, as it relates to actions taken while he was still in office.
The Republican has frequently cited presidential immunity to thwart legal cases against him. On Tuesday, Trump is also expected to attend a federal appeals court hearing in Washington stemming from a similar presidential immunity claim designed to stop Special Counsel Jack Smith from prosecuting him over his refusal to transfer power after losing office.