In January 1943, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill issued the Casablanca Declaration. It stated that the Allies’ goal was the “unconditional surrender” of the Axis powers. This was a statement of moral clarity and resolve for the ages.
In sharp contrast, President Joe Biden has now effectively demanded Israel’s “unconditional surrender.”
After the tragic accidental killing of seven World Central Kitchen (WCK) aid workers by the IDF, Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and demanded that Israel agree to an “immediate ceasefire.” That ceasefire was not conditioned on the release of the hostages still held by Hamas—at least five of whom are Americans—nor the surrender of or even a reciprocal ceasefire with the terrorist organization that launched the Oct. 7 attack.
To ensure there were no misunderstandings, Secretary of State Antony Blinken soon declared regarding Israel’s conduct in Gaza, “If we don’t see the changes that we need to see, there will be changes in our own policy.”
Biden’s ultimatum to Israel demonstrates that he lacks the moral compass to lead the U.S., let alone the free world. It explains why the new Axis powers of China, Russia and Iran are ascendant and America is in retreat. Worse still, Biden’s irresponsible statement has made the world more dangerous for Jews everywhere, including in the U.S.
While tragic, the deaths of the WCK workers were the result of a mistake. Israel investigated the incident and made the findings public. It took full responsibility, identified those responsible and meted out appropriate punishment.
Compare this to the way the Biden administration dealt with the murder of 13 U.S. service members at the Karzai Airport in Kabul during America’s catastrophic surrender in Afghanistan. Those deaths occurred because someone in the Biden administration inexplicably decided that the Taliban should take responsibility for security around the airport. Despite congressional inquiries, we still do not know the identity of that incompetent fool.
Following the murders, the administration “retaliated” by launching an attack on the terrorists suspected of committing the murders. This attack killed no terrorists, but rather 10 innocent civilians, including seven children. We still do not have an explanation as to how this happened. Instead, the American people were lied to. In the words of none other than The New York Times: “Almost everything senior defense officials asserted in the hours, days and weeks after [the mistaken killings] turned out to be false.” Needless to say, no one has ever been held accountable for the debacle.
The irony appears to be lost on the Biden administration, which continues to proclaim its “outrage” over the WCK incident.
Clearly, the WCK tempest in a teapot is insufficient to justify Biden’s demand that Israel commit national suicide. It should be clear: A ceasefire that allows Hamas to survive is a defeat for Israel. Moreover, Hamas has stated publicly that intends to repeat Oct. 7 as often as it can. No country could survive such a campaign of barbaric violence. Of course, that is precisely what Hamas and its terrorist benefactor Iran have in mind. This appears obvious to everyone except the Biden administration.
Biden’s absurd policy also signals to our Arab allies that America is unreliable. It all but guarantees that they will explore closer relations with China at America’s expense. In turn, our enemies will only become more aggressive.
Perhaps worst of all, Biden’s execrable outburst will be used by antisemites across America as a pretext for more mob demonstrations and violence against American Jews and non-Jewish Zionists. The antisemites see Biden’s statement as a vindication of what they have been saying all along: Israel is a racist, apartheid, settler-colonial state with no right to exist. Moreover, as Israel pushes on despite Biden’s scolding, the antisemites will portray Israel’s war efforts as an insult to the president, further demonizing Israel in the public discourse.
Emboldened by White House stupidity, violent acts against Jews across the country are sure to increase in the coming days and weeks.
Whether Biden supports Israel as he claims no longer matters. He now applies a double standard to Israel that no other nation on earth is required to meet. To Biden, Israel has an absolute right to self-defense so long as it never exercises it. Such double standards only legitimize antisemitism.
This is certainly not the first time Joe Biden could be accused of not knowing what he’s doing. Unfortunately, it certainly won’t be the last.
With this in mind, Israel should no longer wait to go into Rafah and finish off Hamas. Time is Israel’s enemy. As we have seen, events can intervene to distract from the task at hand. The Israelis are damned if they do and damned if they don’t. But if they do, they will at least have destroyed Hamas. Better to live with recriminations and enmity than to die loved.