WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden expressed support Friday for Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer after the senator called for new elections in Israel, the latest sign that the U.S. relationship with its closest Middle East ally is careening toward fracture over the war in Gaza.
Schumer, a Jewish Democrat from New York, sent tremors through both countries this week when he said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has “lost his way” and warned that “Israel cannot survive if it becomes a pariah” as Palestinian casualties continue to grow.
“He made a good speech,” Biden said in the Oval Office during a meeting with Ireland’s prime minister. “I think he expressed serious concerns shared not only by him but by many Americans.”
I imagine they thought it might sound better coming from a person of Jewish faith rather than from an 81 year devout catholic.
Plus the US has a long history of interfering with elections in other countries so having the president say it might not be as well-received.