Biden sticks to the playbook, but why?

With his muted response to the Gaza conflict, President Joe Biden is largely sticking to a time-worn US playbook despite pressure from progressive Democrats for a tougher line toward Israel and from America's allies for a more active role to end the violence. 

By citing Israel's right to defend itself against a rocket barrage from the Hamas-ruled enclave and only nudging Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu toward a ceasefire, Biden has effectively given Israeli forces more time to press their offensive against Palestinian militants there. The US has blocked every Security Council action on the issue.

Taking note of the disproportionate casualties, some progressive Democrats, a group that helped Biden win the Democratic nomination and the presidency, are pushing for him to be more assertive with Israel. Biden so far has shown no signs of giving much ground.

The Democratic-led House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee met on Monday, after which some members said its chairman, Representative Gregory Meeks, planned to send a letter asking Biden to delay a planned $735 million smart bomb sale to Israel. However, Meeks had decided by midday on Tuesday not to send the letter.

So why do American presidents and politicians support Israel unequivocally? The answer isn't simple but public opinion in US, Israel's presence in a hostile Middle East and the way the US political campaign runs play a certain part.

After the Holocaust, when Israel became a state in 1948, the US was the first country to recognise it. Moreover, this was right after World War II, when the Cold War between the US and the Soviet Union was taking shape.

The Middle East, with its oil reserves and strategic waterways (think the Suez Canal) was a key battleground for superpower hegemonic influence. The US was taking over from severely weakened European powers as the primary western power broker in the Middle East. Israel's creation gave US the geostrategic edge it needed.

The close bond that the US, Israel formed over the years through wars and crises only deepened over the time, thanks to Israelis contribution to US economy, arts and media.

The American public opinion is also heavily tilted to Israelis. According to a Gallup poll found that 58 percent of Americans sympathise more with Israel, while 75 percent of Americans rate Israel favourably.

However the trend is changing. The February poll found that 25 percent of Americans sympathise more with Palestinians – a 2-percentage-point increase over the previous year and a full six percentage points higher than 2018.

Large majorities of the US Congress in the Democratic and Republican parties are avowedly pro-Israel. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer – all Democrats – have long track records of supporting Israel.

Republicans are even more protective of Israel. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said anyone who advocates for a ceasefire is "basically suggesting that there is moral equivalency" between Israel and Hamas.

However, in recent times pro-Palestinian voices are becoming louder in Congress.

Besides political veterans like Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, new progressives like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Ayanna Pressley and Rashida Tlaib – the first Palestinian American elected to Congress – have emerged as leading voices for Palestinians.

These younger newcomers are not as reliant on the traditional fundraising structures of US politics and are more motivated by concern about Israel's treatment of Palestinians.

Sanders and Warren have called for conditioning US military aid to Israel on Palestinian human rights. Despite being one of the richest countries in the world, Israel is the largest recipient US aid. In 2019, it received $3.8 billion as foreign military aid.

But the voices are too faint still and it is safe to say that official US policy towards the issue may not change soon.