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SUBSCRIBER EXCLUSIVE | OCTOBER 21, 2023

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Biden in Israel: A Week of High Stakes and a Big Hug

Over the past three years, President Biden has faced a series of tough challenges, including high inflation, the Afghan withdrawal fiasco, and the ongoing war in Ukraine.

Just when you thought it couldn’t get crazier, the terror group Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel, and President Biden found himself in the middle of a war zone shortly after.

On Oct. 18, 11 days after a devastating Hamas attack that claimed the lives of thousands of civilians, President Biden arrived in Israel.

During his high-stakes visit, he met with Israeli leaders, military officials, and families who had tragically lost loved ones.

Notably, he became the first U.S. president to visit Israel during a time of war, a fact acknowledged by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin “Bibi” Netanyahu.

“It is deeply, deeply moving. It speaks to the depth of your personal commitment to Israel,” the prime minister told President Biden before their bilateral meeting.

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) hugs US President Joe Biden upon his arrival at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport on Oct. 18, 2023. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)

President Biden’s bear hug for Mr. Netanyahu upon his arrival in Tel Aviv became one of the trip’s most memorable moments.

I didn’t see that coming, but both leaders, who had been engaged in a seemingly endless feud, embraced each other like long-lost buddies.

Remember, this is the same prime minister whom President Biden openly chastised for his law reform policies for months and then refused to invite to the White House.

“I come to Israel with a single message: You are not alone,” President Biden said in a public speech in Israel. “As long as the United States stands—and we will stand forever—we will not let you ever be alone.”

President Biden’s whirlwind visit to Tel Aviv lasted a mere 7.5 hours but carried immense symbolic weight in showcasing U.S. support for Israel.

However, it also came with a note of disappointment.

On the evening before, as the president was on his way to Air Force One, his scheduled meeting in Jordan with Arab leaders was canceled following reports of a deadly explosion at a hospital in Gaza.

Arab leaders, parroting Hamas’s now-debunked claims, pointed fingers at Israel, leading to outrage and protests across the Middle East.

People inspect the area of Al-Ahli hospital in Gaza City, on Oct. 18, 2023, after a blast the previous day. (Mohammed Al-Masri/Reuters)

However, the next day, President Biden blamed the hospital explosion on the “other team,” alluding to the Islamic Jihad Group, all the while delicately navigating diplomatic relations with Arab countries. The White House later confirmed this, saying its current assessment showed Israel wasn’t responsible.

During his visit, President Biden secured an agreement to let humanitarian aid into Gaza via the Rafah crossing from Egypt. Following the Hamas strikes, Israel blocked the entry of food, water, medication, and fuel into the region.

“I was very blunt with the Israelis,” President Biden later told reporters aboard Air Force One.

He warned that if Israelis don’t help ease the suffering, “you’re going to lose credibility worldwide.”

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President Joe Biden addresses the nation on the conflict between Israel and Hamas and the Russian invasion of Ukraine from the Oval Office of the White House on Oct. 19, 2023. (Jonathan Ernst/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

Soon after he returned to Washington, the president sat down in front of cameras and made a strong case for more support for both Israel and Ukraine. During his Thursday speech from the Oval Office, he tried to explain to Americans why the United States should provide more money to these countries to fight their wars.

President Biden said terrorists and dictators need to pay a price for their actions and argued that it is in America’s national security interest to see Israel and Ukraine succeed in their respective wars.

“It’s a smart investment that’s going to pay dividends for American security for generations,” he said.

The next day, the White House requested from Congress a massive $105 billion security package, including $61 billion in military aid for Ukraine and $14 billion for Israel. The package also includes roughly $6 billion for the U.S. southern border, as well as $2 billion for Taiwan.

While there’s strong bipartisan support for helping Israel and Taiwan, some Republicans are giving a thumbs-down to funding Ukraine. They aren’t sold on packaging Israel and Ukraine funding together. They have concerns about corruption and a lack of clear goals in Ukraine.

Israel’s Iron Dome air defense system intercepts a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip, in Ashkelon, Israel, on Oct. 17, 2023. (Tsafrir Abayov/AP Photo)

Some also criticize President Biden for using Israel as a bargaining chip to get additional money for Ukraine.

Furthermore, the ongoing saga surrounding the selection of the House speaker introduces an additional layer of complexity in the process of passing any funding bill at this stage.

Meanwhile, critics, especially Republicans, blame what they see as President Biden’s weak leadership on the global stage for the current state of affairs. Looking ahead, I believe that his leadership and handling of the Hamas-Israel crisis will face intense scrutiny from Congress, American voters, and global leaders. Hence, President Biden is under significant pressure to carefully navigate this challenging moment.

To dig deeper into the subject, read the following original reporting by our journalists:

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