Sunita Sohrabji
Ethnic Media Services
As thousands of protesters sat blocks away from the White House calling for a permanent cease fire in Gaza, President Joe Biden delivered a fiery State of the Union address March 7, stating that Israel has a right to defend itself against Hamas.
But the President also called for a two-state solution, saying it was the only strategy for permanent peace in the region. “There is no other path that guarantees Israel’s security and democracy, no other path that guarantees Palestinians can live with peace and dignity. There is no other path that guarantees peace between Israel and all of its Arab neighbors, including Saudi Arabia,” he said.
Emergency Port
Biden stepped up pressure on Israel to protect Palestinian civilians, and to ensure that emergency food and medical aid can be delivered safely. “30,000 Palestinians have been killed, most of whom are not Hamas,” he said.
The President announced an emergency port: a floating pier off the Gaza Strip to be built by the US military in an attempt to safely deliver food and emergency aid to Palestinians. He emphasized there would be no American “boots on the ground” in the Israel-Hamas war.
Reps. Rashida Tlaib, D-Michigan, and Cori Bush, D-Missouri, held up signs during Biden’s speech that read: “Lasting Ceasefire Now” and “Stop Sending Bombs.”
‘Firefighter and Arsonist’
Monica Candal Rahim, Senior Policy and Advocacy Manager, for the Council on American Islamic Relations’ Los Angeles chapter, told Ethnic Media Services shortly after Biden ended his speech: “This was disappointing. Biden played both sides. He is the firefighter and the arsonist in this conflict.”
“We are spending billions of dollars to send bombs to Gaza,” she said. Commenting on Biden’s stated friendship with Israel, Candal Rahim said: I wish he would extend to Gaza the same courtesy he extends to Israel. And maybe his voicing of a two-state solution is the harbinger for a shift in policy,” she said.
Calls for a permanent cease fire loomed large during the Presidential primary in Michigan Feb. 27, at which more than 13% of voters voted “uncommitted.” In Minnesota’s primary on Super Tuesday March 5, 20% of voters voted “uncommitted.” That option was not available in many states, including California.
Reproductive Rights
Amid multiple standing ovations from Democrats, and occasional boos and heckling from Republicans in the chamber, the President focused largely on domestic policy and the many initiatives he has implemented to lift up the lives of middle-class Americans. He also took on his opponent, former President Donald Trump, excoriating him at several junctures in his remarks without directly naming him.
Women lawmakers attending the State of the Union wore white, to symbolize the fight for reproductive rights. “My predecessor brags about overturning Roe vs. Wade. He has no idea about the political power of women,” said Biden, noting that choice was very much on the minds of voters in 2022 midterm elections, as Republicans lost several key races.
‘Illegal’
Critics pounced on Biden as he called the killer of Laken Riley “illegal.” The 22-year-old nursing student in Georgia was kidnapped and killed by Venezuelan citizen Jose Antonio Ibarra.
Rep. Delia Ramirez, D-Illinois, tweeted: “Disappointed that @POTUS would use such dehumanizing right wing rhetoric to speak about immigrants tonight. No human being is illegal.”
Taking head-on an often-heard criticism, Biden riffed on his age at the end of his speech, noting that he was just 29 when he was first elected to the US Senate. “People said I was too young,” he said with a laugh.
Commentators called the speech a “turning point for Democrats.”
