Playing Politics with Gaza, Part 2

Screen capture courtesy of Fox

I warned on Sunday that it would get ugly. I should add, it’s not only quite ugly, it’s also grown deceptive and dangerous.

The political gamesmanship by the GOP in Washington continues apace over the terrorist attack out of Gaza. In my piece yesterday, I touched upon three aspects of this: misinformation over the Iranian deal, blaming the White House for failure of intel, and the current paralysis and lack of House leadership in Congress.

Today, I unfortunately need to add three more things to that list. First, Republicans opened a new line of attack on Monday by implying that President Biden has been absent and unresponsive to the crisis. Second, right-wing agitators, from Elon Musk to Eric Trump, have been busily spreading misinformation and anti-semitism. And third, with a hold still in place on many diplomatic appointments, led by Sen. Rand Paul and others in the Senate, the State Department has been hampered at the very time key regional leadership is needed.

Let’s dive into these and the politics of the crisis as it plays out here in the U.S. in Part 2 of this series (which I hope is actually over after today).

“Where is President Biden?”

The right is convinced that Joe Biden doesn’t have the stamina and leadership qualities to see us through an international crisis, and so they predictably push narratives that fit that false claim. With respect to the Gaza crisis, they claimed on Fox and across social media that Biden was largely absent from the scene.

“Where is President Biden?” demanded former Trump press secretary Ari Fleishcher.

“President Biden is nowhere to be seen and nothing to say,” declared Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR).

The criticism grew out of the White House calling a “lid” yesterday with the press just before noon. Critics immediately went on the attack.

“With war raging in Israel, the White House called a lid for Joe Biden at 11:46am,” said Fox anchor John Roberts on the X platform. Roberts of course is a seasoned anchor and knows that a lid is not what he implied by this statement.

White nationalist and former White House advisor Stephen Miller falsely stated, “A lid means reporters can go home because no more news is happening. You won’t miss anything. The day is done.” He added, “In this case, it probably means President Biden is taking a nap.”

More responsible and reasonable voices, however, hit back with the truth. Citing Miller’s statement, legal analyst Joyce Vance noted, “The term ‘a lid’ appears to have meant something very different in the Trump administration. Perhaps Stephen Miller reveals too much when he suggests it means the president is napping? Joe Biden is almost certainly in the situation room & otherwise staying on top of the conflict.”

White House spokesman John Kirby pushed back on Fox’s questions about the “lid,” reminding that the fact that the President has no public events doesn’t mean he’s not working. “He is working. He stayed updated throughout the day. He will be talking to foreign leaders,” Kirby clarified.

Indeed, later in the day, a remarkable joint statement on Israel emerged from the five leaders of France, Germany, Italy, the U.K. and the U.S. It is both forceful and nuanced, and it included the following clear statement and warning to third party actors:

We make clear that the terrorist actions of Hamas have no justification, no legitimacy, and must be universally condemned. There is never any justification for terrorism.  In recent days, the world has watched in horror as Hamas terrorists massacred families in their homes, slaughtered over 200 young people enjoying a music festival, and kidnapped elderly women, children, and entire families, who are now being held as hostages.

Our countries will support Israel in its efforts to defend itself and its people against such atrocities. We further emphasize that this is not a moment for any party hostile to Israel to exploit these attacks to seek advantage.

All of us recognize the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people, and support equal measures of justice and freedom for Israelis and Palestinians alike. But make no mistake: Hamas does not represent those aspirations, and it offers nothing for the Palestinian people other than more terror and bloodshed.

In short, the White House called a “lid” and made no public appearances because it was doing the hard work of international diplomacy. The attacks by the GOP during a time of crisis continue to undermine U.S. foreign interests and present an opening for our enemies to exploit.

Amplification of misinformation and antisemitism

The collapse of safeguards on the site formerly known as Twitter following its takeover by Elon Musk carried evident and troubling consequences in the last 24 hours. Faked videos of alleged attacks, some actually pulled from video games, proliferated across the site with little to no effort to moderate or remove them.

Eric Trump even got in the game, sharing a video of artillery fire while declaring, “Less than three weeks ago, President Biden delivered $6 billion in funds to Iran. This is the result.” The video has garnered 3.2 million views. Other users pointed out, however, that the video was of Russian rockets firing into Syria outside Aleppo, and that it occurred during his father’s administration on February 28, 2020. As I noted yesterday, there still is no evidence that Iran directly supported the Hamas attack out of Gaza, let alone used any U.S.-delivered funds, though it is well known that Iran regularly funds and trains Hamas and other terrorist organizations in the region.

Elon Musk also amplified some worrisome content. After the start of the war in Gaza, he made an alarming recommendation for his followers to also follow the “War Monitor” account. “It is also worth following direct sources on the ground,” Musk added, encouraging his followers to suggest them in the replies.

“Thanks for the support,” War Monitor replied to the post, which received 2.6 million views. That account, however, is known for its virulent antisemitism and anti-Israel posts.

After widespread criticism, Musk has since deleted his recommendation of the War Monitor Account.

Musk has come under fire from the Anti-Defamation League and other civil rights organizations for promoting hate speech on his platform. The ADL raised the problem with X’s advertisers, and in response Musk threatened to sue the group for defamation.

Diplomatic vacancies in key Middle East positions

It’s not only military appointments and promotions that have been held up in the Senate, in that case by Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL). Key diplomatic positions have also gone unfilled due to similar holds placed on them, led principally by Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) with the help of a few other Republican senators.

Paul had announced in early June a block on all State Department nominees until the Biden administration released documents related to (checks notes) “the origin of the COVID-19 pandemic.” The State Department had worked extensively with Paul’s office to achieve a compromise, according to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, but had not yet reached one.  

In July, Secretary Blinken took on Sen. Paul directly, warning of the danger to U.S. international diplomacy. In a letter to the Senate, he urged it to “swiftly” confirm more than 60 nominees to key foreign policy positions. “Vacant posts have a long-term negative impact on U.S. national security, including our ability to reassure Allies and partners, and counter diplomatic efforts by our adversaries,” Blinken wrote. “The United States needs to be present, leading, and engaging worldwide with our democratic values at the forefront.”

Blinken specifically warned that there would be no confirmed U.S. ambassadors to Egypt, Israel, Jordan and Lebanon by the end of the summer as current sitting ambassadors completed their tours. This has proven correct. By one reporter’s count, the following military and diplomatic positions now remain unfilled in a moment of extreme crisis for the region:

• Navy chief

• Air Force chief

• 5th Fleet commander + deputy

• CENTCOM #2 commander + #2 policy chief

• AFCENT #2 commander

• Amb to Lebanon

• Amb to Israel

• Amb to Egypt

• Amb to Kuwait

• Amb to Oman

Robbie Gramer, the national security reporter for Foreign Policy magazine, further noted that there has been “No confirmed top USAID official for the Middle East for nearly 3 years” and “No State Department Coordinator for Counterterrorism for nearly 2 years.”

The consequences of Rand’s shenanigans in the Senate cannot be overstated. “The State Department isn’t [the Department of Defense]: We don’t have weapon systems; we have diplomats, armed with experience and hard-won expertise,” said Alan Eyre, a former senior State Department official, in an interview with Gramer. “Not having Senate-vetted and -confirmed ambassadors in the field during a crisis is like fighting a battle with needed weaponry sitting in storage.”

Democrats have pressed for at least the Ambassador to Israel to be confirmed by special Senate action, but what is needed above all is for Tuberville and Rand to relent and release their holds.

A note here: We should not place blame for the vacancies on the Democratic leadership. Without a Senate rule change, which there aren’t the votes to pass because of Sens. Manchin and Sinema, there is currently no way around the holds but to slog through votes one by one. But this would be to the detriment of other critical Senate business including passage of the budget. Such a move would reward and encourage the obstructionists and lead to more such behavior, while also preventing the Democrats from controlling the legislative agenda and confirming judges. That kind of derailment is precisely what the obstructionists want to see happen.

Until voters punish their own senators and the Republican party for their obstruction and for the damage done to U.S. military readiness and diplomatic effectiveness, we will be hobbled by our own divisions and at the mercy of the political nihilists. The GOP leadership in the Senate bears large responsibility for not being able to control its extremist members, while we are left dealing with dangerous enemies in the middle of a crisis with one hand tied behind our backs.