Several U.S. federal officials and hundreds of Democratic congressional staffers are publicly criticizing the Biden administration’s show of solidarity with Israel this week amid the Jewish state’s ongoing war with Hamas.
Reported unrest in the federal ranks comes as President Joe Biden met with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli president Isaac Herzog on Wednesday, nearly two weeks after Hamas militants first attacked Israel.
Shortly after the president’s diplomatic visit, Josh Paul resigned from his position as director of the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs in an act of protest against U.S. military aid being sent to Israel.
“The response Israel is taking, and with it the American support both for that response and for the status quo of the occupation, will only lead to more and deeper suffering for both the Israeli and the Palestinian people,” wrote Paul in a resignation letter posted to LinkedIn. “I fear we are repeating the same mistakes we have made these past decades, and I decline to be a part of it for longer.”
Now, it looks like more Biden appointees and government employees are following Paul’s lead.
“Sources with direct knowledge confirm many high-ranking Muslim appointees are strongly considering resigning,” Daily Beast columnist Wajahat Ali posted on X Wednesday. “The Biden [administration] isn’t listening to them during this crisis, their communities are frustrated [with] them, & Islamophobes are targeting them and questioning their loyalties.”
Diplomats are also preparing a dissent cable objecting to the administration’s handling of the ongoing war, HuffPost reported, citing two unnamed State Department officials.
“There’s basically a mutiny brewing within State at all levels,” one official told the outlet.
Even more telling, more than 400 anonymous congressional staffers had signed onto an open letter that was circulating Thursday, imploring their bosses in Congress to demand an “immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hamas” before the conflict further intensifies.
“While President Biden and Secretary Blinken’s diplomatic efforts to restore and provide humanitarian aid are crucial, this progress is fragile,” the 411 staffers wrote in the letter. “As Muslims, Jews, and allies, we believe that denying these basic resources violates the tenets of our faiths, values, and our humanity.”
Additionally, the newly hired political director for Representative Ro Khanna (D., Calif.) tendered his resignation earlier this week after the congressman failed to co-sponsor a House resolution that calls for a ceasefire in the Middle East. The legislation was sponsored by Representatives Cori Bush (D., Mo.) and Rashida Tlaib (D., Mich.), both progressive Squad members.
“Personal note: I resigned my job on Monday because of a refusal to call for a ceasefire,” political director Adam Ramer posted on his private X account. “I will be doing everything in my power to stand against war & for Palestinian justice. So please continue to [direct message] for any volunteering/organizing needs that I can assist with in NY/DC.”
“I have great respect for Adam’s conviction and he is a passionate voice for human rights for Palestinians,” Khanna told The Intercept’s Ryan Grim. “I will continue to call for protecting civilian life, humanitarian aid, and living up to the standards of the Geneva convention.”
Adam Jentleson, who serves as chief of staff for Senator John Fetterman, criticized the staffers in a social-media post, pointing out that no one elected them to make policy.
the thing about being a staffer is that no one elected you to represent them. https://t.co/D1Atq2wgJt
— Adam Jentleson (@AJentleson) October 20, 2023
Jentleson’s post came after Fetterman criticized fellow progressive lawmakers for insisting that Israel agree to a ceasefire without first destroying the terror organization that massacred 1,400 Israeli civilians. Fetterman also slammed his colleagues for buying into Palestinian claims that an Israeli airstrike destroyed a hospital in Gaza on Tuesday, despite the evidence that the damage was caused by a misfired Palestinian rocket.
“It’s truly disturbing that Members of Congress rushed to blame Israel for the hospital tragedy in Gaza. Who would take the word of a group that just massacred innocent Israeli civilians over our key ally?” Fetterman wrote on X on Wednesday.
On Wednesday, several thousand anti-Israel demonstrators congregated on Capitol Hill to protest against the Israeli war against Gaza, at one point leading to unlawful entry into the Cannon House Office Building. As a result, Capitol Police arrested some 300 protesters at the rally for refusing to leave the premises.