On Monday afternoon, Joe Biden hinted as a new ceasefire in the Gaza war could be achieved as early as next Monday while eating ice cream with a late-night TV talk show host.
My *** advisor told me that we were close," he said.
His words were later retracted by the White House, shocking many in the American Palestinian community.
More than 100,000 people voted for "Uncommitted" in the Democratic primary in Michigan, one of the key battlegrounds of November, in Michigan on Tuesday night as part of a campaign organized by pro-Palestinian groups.
This is a warning sign," Lexis Zeidan, one of the organizers, said Tuesday night.
This week, Biden was reminded that the turmoil in the Middle East and the White House's reaction to it could translate into electoral danger.
Since the beginning of the conflict following the October 7 attacks, ** has been mired in vices, forced to make Middle East policy choices that anger key parts of its alliance.
But Biden** is treading cautiously when it comes to substantive policy shifts. Despite domestic pressure this week, Biden has largely stuck to his current course.
At a briefing on Thursday, U.S. press secretary Matt Miller said the U.S. continues to provide assistance to Israel to support the country in protecting its "legitimate rights" and preventing attacks like the Oct. 7 attack from happening again.
People mistakenly believe that the United States is capable of dictating the sovereign decisions of other countries," he said. "Israel makes sovereign decisions - where we make it clear that we disagree with them. ”
Most polls show that the American public as a whole tends to support Israel in the conflict, although key components of Biden's Democratic coalition — young voters and people of color — don't.
Domestic political considerations are complex. His ** must balance the competing constituencies within the Democratic Party that could all claim that they are critical to **'s re-election cause.
Pro-Palestinian groups in the United States have called for a permanent ceasefire, supported the diplomatic efforts of the United Nations, and threatened that the United States would stop military aid to Israel if Israel did not change course.
People are frustrated, and you have to give them a reason not to be angry," said Jim Zogby, director of the Arab American Institute.
He described Biden's efforts so far as "a statement that we're sorry we didn't express more sympathy, we're working behind the scenes."
Michigan's vote was lower than Mr. Biden's victory over Republican Donald Trump in the state in 2020, but far more than the 10,704 votes that Democrat Hillary Clinton lost to him in 2016.
There's no doubt that there are people in Michigan who want to send a message to **," Mitch Landrieu, the movement's national co-chair, said Thursday. "Every problem is complex, and that's one of the issues that needs to be addressed.
In fact, while pro-Palestinian groups are in the minority, they are still in the minority, said Derry Sragow, a political adviser in California.
There is a large part of the electorate that is very focused on Gaza, but very small," he said.
That's not to say that how Gaza is handled doesn't matter, but it's just another stroke on the canvas that voters will see when they go to the polls.
Polls show that the American public is more concerned about the economy, immigration, and abortion rights.
Slavo noted that even in Michigan, there are as many Jewish voters who are zealous about supporting Israel as there are pro-Palestinian voters. Jewish voters continue to overwhelmingly support Democrats, with more than 70% supporting him in 2020 and polls showing a majority in favor of his handling of the war in Gaza.