In a letter published Wednesday on Medium, an anonymous group of Biden’s campaign staffers demanded the president call for a ceasefire in Gaza, citing concerns that not shifting his policy on the issue could hurt his 2024 chances.


“Biden for President staff have seen volunteers quit in droves, and people who have voted blue for decades feel uncertain about doing so for the first time ever, because of this conflict,” the Medium letter read.

“It is not enough to merely be the alternative to Donald Trump,” the campaigners continued. “The campaign has to shift the feeling in the pits of voters’ stomachs, the same feeling that weighs on us every day as we fight for your reelection. The only way to do that is to call for a ceasefire.”

  • treeko@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    83
    arrow-down
    11
    ·
    6 months ago

    This thread is wild… is it seriously shocking to people here that Biden campaigners (plurality young people) are upset about his response to the genocide in Gaza?? Yes, obviously we need to vote for him, but it’s crazy that criticism is labeled as astroturfing or attempts to sabotage his chances.

    • mlg@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      41
      arrow-down
      7
      ·
      6 months ago

      I really hate that every time someone criticizes him, some dumbass replies with “Yeah well Trump is way worse”

      Yeah no shit lol, just because I hate the current president doesn’t mean I’m automatically selecting the deranged orange.

      • Semi-Hemi-Demigod@kbin.social
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        1
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        6 months ago

        That’s why I dislike “approval” polling. I haven’t approved of most of the people I’ve voted for. That’s the point of our system: You vote for people you hate and they do things you don’t like.

        • Daft_ish@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          1
          arrow-down
          1
          ·
          6 months ago

          Looks at what happens when people vote for someone they like. The bigots coalesce and you get Trump.

          • hark@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            2
            ·
            6 months ago

            Yeah, bigots get a candidates that they like and they went to the polls with a big smile on their face. They had a reason to vote. Everyone else? “Here, have this old out-of-touch jackass that we pushed through the primaries by having all the other candidates drop down right before super tuesday, while keeping Warren in to split votes with Bernie, and having all our buddies in big media tell everyone about the supposed miracle comeback from biden”. Covid won 2020 for biden, but he thinks he’s hot shit. The closest thing to hot shit about him is what’s in his diaper.

      • CapeWearingAeroplane@sopuli.xyz
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        15
        ·
        edit-2
        6 months ago

        Have you never spent your spare time contributing to something you care about? I spend time contributing to open source code and Wikipedia, previously I’ve spent time building stuff to make a local park nicer. I could definitely see myself spending time campaigning for a political party if I felt the future of my country depended on it.

        When you’re doing something like that, spending time on something you have a passion for together with others, it’s typically more fun and fulfilling than tiresome. You should try it some time.

      • SCB@lemmy.world
        cake
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        7
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        6 months ago

        If you want to see any of your political goals come to fruition, volunteering is by far the best way to do that.

        Volunteer for local campaigns often. Participate heavily. Consider becoming a citizen lobbyist.

        I love the work I do for Citizens Climate Lobby, for instance.

        https://citizensclimatelobby.org/

    • phoneymouse@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      17
      arrow-down
      12
      ·
      6 months ago

      I’m upset too, but there is more than one issue in the world. These people need to put things in perspective. If Trump wins, America is literally over.

      • CommanderCloon
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        13
        arrow-down
        13
        ·
        6 months ago

        So, genocide is a “single issue” which means it should be ignored? How can you hope for any semblance of change if you start by overlooking literal genocide

        • dvoraqs@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          8
          arrow-down
          4
          ·
          edit-2
          6 months ago

          How can you hope for any semblance of change…

          You balance it against your other priorities

        • assassin_aragorn@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          4
          ·
          edit-2
          6 months ago

          It isn’t overlooking it to accept that there’s nothing we can do about it. There will be no viable candidate who opposes Israel, and that’s the unfortunate truth. There are still significant differences however between the two candidates, and I don’t want the one who’s likely to start a domestic genocide to win.

          There’s blood on our hands, and we don’t have a way to wipe it off. I’d rather accept it and try to move forward than try in vain to clean them.

        • SCB@lemmy.world
          cake
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          4
          arrow-down
          15
          ·
          6 months ago

          It isn’t a literal genocide, but a figurative one, which is the source of the disagreement.

          0.0044% of Gazans have been killed. The US killed the same net amount of civilians during the Battle of Mosul, and Gaza is three times as dense as Mosul.

          This number will go up, because this war is being brutally waged, and Israel does deserve criticism for it. But words matter, and genocide is a dumb word to use because it has actual meanings, and requires specific intent

          • Silverseren@kbin.socialOP
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            9
            arrow-down
            2
            ·
            6 months ago

            0.0044% of Gazans have been killed.

            ???

            The population of the Gaza Strip is just over 2 million (2.048). The amount of Gazans killed in the past three months is 22600, as of today. That is, by my math, 1.13% of the population that has been killed in those three months, or 1 out of every 100 people.

            • Prophet@lemmy.world
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              8
              ·
              edit-2
              6 months ago

              To add to this, genocide (as defined by the UN) does not just include directly killing a particular group:

              Definition Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide

              Article II

              In the present Convention, genocide means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such:

              1. Killing members of the group; 2. Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group; 3. Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; 4. Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group; 5. Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.

              So in addition to killing 20k+ Gaza civilians, Israel’s response has displaced countless others with their intense and indiscriminate bombing (see points #2, #3, possibly #4). NYT and other sources claim that up to 1.8 million Gazans have been displaced, which NYT claims is 80% of their population. This is in addition to the conditions Gaza was already being subjected to, such as being denied water and electricity (#3) by Israel.

              The evidence overwhelmingly shows that this is genocide. “Figurative” is such a sleazy doublespeak way of excusing the behavior here.

              Edit: sorry my link should work now

      • Aabbcc@lemm.ee
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        8
        arrow-down
        13
        ·
        6 months ago

        Too bad trump and Biden are the only two people so I just have to be pro genocide.

        • phoneymouse@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          11
          arrow-down
          9
          ·
          6 months ago

          You don’t have to. You can have your own views and make the best decision available to you given the circumstances.

          • knightly@pawb.social
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            3
            arrow-down
            9
            ·
            6 months ago

            So you’re saying not to vote? Or that we should write-in a vote for a non-genocider?

            • phoneymouse@lemmy.world
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              8
              arrow-down
              2
              ·
              6 months ago

              No I’m saying that you can vote for someone and not agree with everything they stand for because that’s the best option you have. We do need reforms in America, but is that a reason to not vote or to wait around until all the conditions are perfect for you to vote your ideals?

              • knightly@pawb.social
                link
                fedilink
                arrow-up
                1
                ·
                edit-2
                6 months ago

                So if I disagree with one pro-genocide politician less than the other, I should support a pro-genocide candidate? That’s not reasonable, it’s falling prey to a false choice. I hate to paraphrase the Declaration of Independence at Americans, but at least the founders understood when the course of human events made it necessary to dissolve political ties.

              • dtc@lemmy.world
                link
                fedilink
                arrow-up
                2
                arrow-down
                7
                ·
                edit-2
                6 months ago

                So what is the move? It’s clearly wrong to vote for Biden and you say not voting is a waste. So be frank and say what you’re thinking clearly and plainly.

                • HipHoboHarold@lemmy.world
                  link
                  fedilink
                  arrow-up
                  6
                  arrow-down
                  2
                  ·
                  6 months ago

                  They did say it clearly. But let me see if I can’t help.

                  You can have a slap in the face

                  Or a rusty shank to the neck

                  One or the other.

                  If you don’t pick, one will be picked for you.

                  I get not wanting to vote for him. I do. But not all of us get that luxury.

                  I’m gay. Me and my boyfriend are talking about leaving the country. He’s got one last semester of nursing school. Lots of places are desperate for nurses. We can probably get out. If we do, then I can say we get to move.

                  If the Republicans win, it won’t just be get to, it will become need to as well. Any queer person who stays is taking a big risk. But not everyone will be able to leave.

                  Between the push for a fascist theocracy with Trump as the dictator as he uses phrases pulled from the Nazis and gives us their plans under Project 2025, I don’t get the luxury of saying “Well, let’s see if we can’t come back from this.” When we talk about being terrified of a Republican presidency, we are not exaggerating.

                  This isn’t a light decision to make. I hate it. Even if the dems win, we might still leave. Project 2025 will just turn to Project 2029. Project 2033. Eventually they will win. But in the mean time I have to decide between voting for Joe who supports Isreal

                  Or risk Trump who supports Isreal, but also supports the same thing here

                  It’s Biden or Trump

                  A slap in the face or a rusty shank to the neck

    • Silverseren@kbin.socialOP
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      11
      arrow-down
      15
      ·
      6 months ago

      The letter was organized by campaign staffers. Five of them confirmed the authenticity of the letter to West Wing Playbook. Those staffers, who were granted anonymity because of their concern of backlash, said they were motivated to organize their letter out of a sense of moral responsibility.

      https://www.politico.com/news/2024/01/03/biden-campaign-anonymous-letter-israel-hamas-00133705

      Nice try though to ignore the issue.

        • Silverseren@kbin.socialOP
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          6
          arrow-down
          10
          ·
          6 months ago

          Yes, and states that the authenticity of those behind it were confirmed. So it’s not “claims to be from 17 staffers”, we know for a fact that it IS from 17 staffers. It is only anonymous to protect them from getting attacked from AIPAC and related groups, as they have been doing to anyone that criticizes Israel and has any prominence.

          • HandBreadedTools@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            6
            arrow-down
            2
            ·
            6 months ago

            Where does it say that the identities were confirmed? I’ve read the entire article like 3 times looking for it and can’t seem to find it.

  • TheBananaKing@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    48
    arrow-down
    11
    ·
    6 months ago

    Gotta love the abusive-relationship mechanic from the dems.

    “Yes, I’m a toxic piece of shit, but without me you’ll be starving on the streets. So stop complaining, make me a sandwich, and tell me you love me. Now.”

    And anyone suggesting that maybe they should leave anyway… is smeared as just wanting to drive victims into homelessness and prostitution.

    If you want people to vote for you, be good enough to vote for on your own merits.

    If you’re struggling to get votes despite your opponent being literally Trump, then you need to take a long hard look in the mirror.

  • Boddhisatva@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    45
    arrow-down
    14
    ·
    6 months ago

    In a letter published Wednesday on Medium, an anonymous group of Biden’s campaign staffers demanded the president call for a ceasefire in Gaza

    Surly they couldn’t be lying about being campaign staffers, could they? I suppose they have to remain anonymous to protect themselves from violent and deranged Biden cultists.

    • Silverseren@kbin.socialOP
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      21
      arrow-down
      30
      ·
      6 months ago

      The letter was organized by campaign staffers. Five of them confirmed the authenticity of the letter to West Wing Playbook. Those staffers, who were granted anonymity because of their concern of backlash, said they were motivated to organize their letter out of a sense of moral responsibility.

      https://www.politico.com/news/2024/01/03/biden-campaign-anonymous-letter-israel-hamas-00133705

      Nice try though to ignore the issue.

      • ITeeTechMonkey@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        35
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        6 months ago

        You should have posted the Politco article instead of the Newsweek. You are even citing the Politico article! The Newsweek article is hot garbage.

      • PhlubbaDubba@lemm.ee
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        10
        arrow-down
        2
        ·
        6 months ago

        Excuse the world for being inherently suspicious of efforts that make space for letting Trump back into the White House after “letting the establishment learn their lesson” worked so outstandingly well in 2016.

        Nobody’s ignoring the issue, they’re rightfully questioning the motives of the people who are stoking the flames on the issue.

  • BeautifulMind ♾️@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    30
    arrow-down
    2
    ·
    6 months ago

    It’s good to see that people are putting pressure on Biden to do the right thing vis-a-vis Israel and Gaza. I think it’s the right thing to do and I’ve been so disillusioned to see American democracy reduced to a booster contest between soulless ghouls that must never be challenged or questioned™.

    It’s not at all surprising to see toxic, bad-faith rhetoric deployed in his defense, tho. If there’s one thing I can count on from the Dem establishment is that when faced with unsolicited input from young people, out comes the reductionist rhetoric about how anything that isn’t ball-slobbering of their candidate and whatever the party has handed down as its agenda is a vote for fascism.

    As it did in 2016, the Democrats are going through energetic disagreements over their future direction as a party- and as it did in 2016, the establishment is going to have to decide whether it can afford to alienate its younger/leftier constituency in order to chase votes to the center

    • rosymind@leminal.space
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      12
      arrow-down
      2
      ·
      6 months ago

      The problem is that younger people often don’t vote. So chasing their votes is a losing strat. Younger citizens need to actually get out there and make sure that they are casting votes, otherwise they will continue to not be taken seriously

      • thisisnotgoingwell@programming.dev
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        6
        arrow-down
        5
        ·
        6 months ago

        I’m sure if younger people were given a reason to give a shit they’d come out and vote. Even the candidates that are supposed to be more relatable to younger voters(Dems) have tone deaf talking points that revolve around the stock market, unemployment, gas prices, and inflation, none of which are an accurate metric that would define economic opportunity for the youth. Kind of a self fulfilling prophecy.

        • hark@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          4
          arrow-down
          1
          ·
          6 months ago

          You’re correct but I see you’ve been downvoted by people who think young people “just don’t vote” and this defeatist attitude is prevalent in the democrat fanbase. It’s always “the president can’t do that” when it comes to helping people where obama and biden can only offer breadcrumbs in 12 years, but somehow trump can turn the entire country into a fascist hellhole in just 4 years.

          Give young people a reason to vote and they will: https://www.pewresearch.org/2008/11/13/young-voters-in-the-2008-election/

          But nah, it’s instead either “they don’t vote so we don’t need to care about them” or “if we shame them hard enough then they must vote for us!” Then when the democrats inevitably lose an election, it’s somehow the voters’ fault as if democrats are owed votes.

  • CaptDust@sh.itjust.works
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    38
    arrow-down
    11
    ·
    edit-2
    6 months ago

    This smells like #WalkAway psyop bullshit. Anon letter on Medium as a source, lol please.

    • Silverseren@kbin.socialOP
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      21
      arrow-down
      19
      ·
      6 months ago

      The letter was organized by campaign staffers. Five of them confirmed the authenticity of the letter to West Wing Playbook. Those staffers, who were granted anonymity because of their concern of backlash, said they were motivated to organize their letter out of a sense of moral responsibility.

      https://www.politico.com/news/2024/01/03/biden-campaign-anonymous-letter-israel-hamas-00133705

      Nice try though to ignore the issue.

      • CaptDust@sh.itjust.works
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        15
        arrow-down
        5
        ·
        edit-2
        6 months ago

        I jumped to conclusions, at least someone has confirmed it’s legit. Wasn’t ignoring it but the astroturfing “Anon outside any verifiable or published source says” is a problem that keeps recurring.

        They are entitled to their opinions, and I’m not even in disagreement - the entire conflict is an abomination and horrendous… but I’m curious who they’d vote for otherwise. No one worth talking about in US politics would chart a different course.

        • Logi@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          7
          ·
          6 months ago

          It’s much easier to hold your nose and vote for the (much!) less bad option than it is to decide to spend your time and effort working for their campaign.

      • SCB@lemmy.world
        cake
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        6
        arrow-down
        2
        ·
        6 months ago

        17 people is not a significant portion of his campaign staff, and the campaign hasn’t even mobilized for staffing heavily yet.

        • Silverseren@kbin.socialOP
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          3
          arrow-down
          3
          ·
          6 months ago

          The letter is the latest example of internal rifts not just within the Democratic Party but within the Biden operation over how to approach the conflict. Since the fall, a flurry of protest letters — often written without names attached — have urged the president to support a ceasefire. In November, 500 political appointees and staff members from 40 government agencies anonymously signed one letter, while another letter included the names of over 500 alumni of Biden’s 2020 presidential campaign. White House interns also sent a letter to the president and staffers on Capitol Hill have also sent similar letters to their bosses. Biden supporters have raised questions about the veracity of those numbers, noting that the anonymity makes it impossible to confirm.

          How about 500 people? Is that number more significant?

          • SCB@lemmy.world
            cake
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            3
            arrow-down
            1
            ·
            6 months ago

            Not particularly, no. Something to the tune of 2-3 million people volunteered for the Biden campaign in 2020

  • Verdant Banana@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    25
    arrow-down
    4
    ·
    edit-2
    6 months ago

    well he fired all the staffers who admitted to cannabis use even though he promised not to

    hard to work and get the job done with someone who flip flops on everything he says probably quit too

  • qwertyWarlord@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    43
    arrow-down
    26
    ·
    6 months ago

    Hmm, let me see. Ceasefire in a country that has nothing to do with us and doesn’t effect us in the slightest

    OR

    We elect a literal fascist who actually admitted he will be a dictator and use the military against his enemies at home

    Tough choice

    • Silverseren@kbin.socialOP
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      31
      arrow-down
      23
      ·
      6 months ago

      I’m sorry that pushing for Biden to be a better person is such a problem for you. Trump is a monster, but that doesn’t mean we should ignore everything Biden does and pretend he’s perfect.

      • norbert@kbin.social
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        28
        arrow-down
        12
        ·
        6 months ago

        I don’t see anyone pretending Biden is perfect though?

        I see a whole lot of people saying “a sane rational actor instead of a fucking psychpath and his cult.”

        • z3rOR0ne
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          14
          arrow-down
          19
          ·
          6 months ago

          You’re in survival mode. So calling on the better of two options to condemn genocide and call for a cease fire is a waste of time?

          I guess you have to compromise your morality to survive, but damn…

          • PhlubbaDubba@lemm.ee
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            26
            arrow-down
            2
            ·
            6 months ago

            When the implied threat behind that call is letting the fascist wannabe dictator into office, yes it’s a dangerous waste of time.

            I’m a Palestinian here in America and I feel fucking violated by how many people are ready to let me hang by the klansman’s rope on the excuse of being mad about what Israel is doing to my cousins in the Levant.

            Meanwhile the man they’re supposedly so mad at for his inaction has been pressing Israel on de-escalation, negotiating prisoner swaps, and negotiated Gaza the right to access their own offshore natural resources to use the revenue for their own development.

            Biden at his worst is doing more for the Palestinian community than these supposed allies of ours are doing at what they insist are their best.

            What else is there left to conclude except that vote hostagers prefer Palestinians dead rather than living, dead Palestinians don’t call them out for enabling the circumstances that let Israel and racist Americans get away with tormenting and killing us.

        • FuglyDuck@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          8
          arrow-down
          17
          ·
          6 months ago

          Every cult likes to think they’re sane and rational.

          Even the Cult of Biden.

      • gregorum@lemm.ee
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        11
        arrow-down
        4
        ·
        6 months ago

        that doesn’t mean we should ignore everything Biden does and pretend he’s perfect.

        who is doing that? where?

      • captainlezbian@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        5
        arrow-down
        4
        ·
        6 months ago

        He’s not perfect. He’s like getting 6 hours of sleep, tolerable. Trump is like getting 45 minutes of sleep a week, concerning and dangerous. 8 hours of sleep isn’t on the ballot and probably won’t be next time either

      • Fades@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        4
        arrow-down
        4
        ·
        edit-2
        6 months ago

        Oh shut the fuck up, that’s not what any of this even is, not to mention it’s not about being a “better person”. There is far more complexity to this whole mess. This shit doesn’t start nor end with Biden.

        Your other responses in comments are just as shortsighted and simplistic, but go off ig

    • CommanderCloon
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      12
      arrow-down
      5
      ·
      6 months ago

      “Genocide is fine if it doesn’t happen to me” is not a take I was expecting to see being upvoted.

    • rodolfo@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      6 months ago

      Ceasefire in a country that has nothing to do with us and doesn’t effect us in the slightest

      a brutal lie in the first part, a gross lie in the second part. mind you, I’m not pushing for any of the two octogenarian that will be elected.

  • Optional@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    28
    arrow-down
    12
    ·
    6 months ago

    A group of staffers working on President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign warned the president that his volunteers are quitting “in droves” over his handling of Israel’s military response in the Gaza Strip.

    “A group”? Two people said a thing? Well lets blast it out there like it’s fuckin’ true! FFS.

    This is a garbage article. Newsweek is digging for clicks and does not give a shit about America. Just like all the corporate news sewers: CNN, NBC, ABC, WaPo, NYT who covered Trump relentlessly and repeated whatever insanity he spewed as if he were not a demented rapist fraud who can’t stop lying.

    Fuck newsweek for this, whatever they are now is just twitter with a masthead.

    • Silverseren@kbin.socialOP
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      21
      arrow-down
      15
      ·
      6 months ago

      The letter was organized by campaign staffers. Five of them confirmed the authenticity of the letter to West Wing Playbook. Those staffers, who were granted anonymity because of their concern of backlash, said they were motivated to organize their letter out of a sense of moral responsibility.

      https://www.politico.com/news/2024/01/03/biden-campaign-anonymous-letter-israel-hamas-00133705

      Way more than two people. Nice try though to ignore the issue.

      • Optional@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        4
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        6 months ago

        “Way more than two” being five? Okay. Is five “droves”?

        It is not. Way to hang on to trying to make this legit. It’s bullshit intended to stoke FUD and you’re all onboard. Give it up.

        • Silverseren@kbin.socialOP
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          2
          arrow-down
          3
          ·
          6 months ago

          17 people behind the letter alone, discussing the many other people they’ve personally seen quit over the past three months.

      • test113@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        6
        arrow-down
        4
        ·
        6 months ago

        What issue? That unpaid interns or those one step below are not agreeing with long-term political decisions that were practically made before they were born and only understand the surface of the subject?

        Yeah, thanks. I think I’ll just ignore those as well if I were in a position of power, and you would too.

        What is this “moral responsibility,” and why is it just now relevant? There were, are, and will be much bigger and worse issues, like climate change, but no one is talking about moral responsibility and blasting the ones who are in charge like it is happening right now with the Israel/Palestine crisis.

        Maybe it is just the age of massive misinformation and propaganda campaigns from all sides (some are engaging much more than others) with which I have a problem. Because, in the end, I applaud people who stand up for what they think is right, like those interns. It just comes across as too selective to be a principle. I mean, the Israel/Palestine issue has been ongoing for what? 50 years? It’s not even the first hot phase or siege of Gaza. And then you start working in politics and then you became aware of the politics and stopped working there? What?

    • Ensign_Crab@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      17
      arrow-down
      6
      ·
      6 months ago

      But, again, what are they going to do? Campaign for “no President has done more for Israel” Trump?

      Not campaign at all. Which I’m sure someone here will interpret as being identical to campaigning for Trump.

      • Fades@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        4
        arrow-down
        4
        ·
        6 months ago

        Yeah who needs political activism anyway! Oh wait… that’s how we got into this fucked mess in the first place.

        • CommanderCloon
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          3
          arrow-down
          2
          ·
          6 months ago

          You can absolutely be an activist who doesn’t work under a particular party or politician

          • Optional@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            2
            arrow-down
            1
            ·
            6 months ago

            Yes exactly. Like the displaced mentally ill guy who yells at the commuters downtown. Completely free of corporate entanglements.

      • jordanlund@lemmy.worldM
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        6
        arrow-down
        11
        ·
        6 months ago

        It pretty much is, or if they push to a 3rd party who will end up taking away 5-10% of the vote, that’s just as good as campaigning for Trump.

        Stein, Kennedy, West have absolutely no hope of winning even a single state, much less the election, but they will make it certain that Biden doesn’t win.

        • Ensign_Crab@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          14
          arrow-down
          3
          ·
          6 months ago

          Really? Everyone who isn’t actively campaigning for Biden is campaigning for Trump? Is there anything else to which Biden is entitled by virtue of being the second worst candidate?

          If I don’t sell everything I own and donate every dime to Biden, have I actually sold everything I owned and donated it to Trump?

          • FuglyDuck@lemmy.world
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            6
            arrow-down
            1
            ·
            edit-2
            6 months ago

            Is there anything else to which Biden is entitled by virtue of being the second worst candidate?

            Well now that you ask, you also need to talk about how amazing the economy is, and how young and vigorous he is, and like how much safer we are with a secure Israel and stuff.

            Any conversation that isn’t talking about how amazing Biden is, is propaganda for Trump.

            (Excuse me while I go wash my mouth out.)

        • Semi-Hemi-Demigod@kbin.social
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          3
          arrow-down
          1
          ·
          6 months ago

          So if I’m not out bothering my neighbors by knocking on doors and littering the highway with signs I’m campaigning for Trump?

    • FuglyDuck@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      15
      arrow-down
      6
      ·
      6 months ago

      Per Biden himself, there are 50 others who can beat Trump. So, if Biden withdrew his candidacy- like he promised he would last time, there’s zero risk.

      In fact, I would say not doing so is the greater risk.

      • Semi-Hemi-Demigod@kbin.social
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        1
        ·
        6 months ago

        I guarantee all fifty of those other people would also support Israel.

        The neat part about America is that it doesn’t care what you think, and will do heinous shit regardless. But you still have to vote or you’re a bad person.

      • jordanlund@lemmy.worldM
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        2
        arrow-down
        5
        ·
        6 months ago

        Oh, there’s no doubt Biden should bounce, and if Trump gets convicted, or otherwise removed from consideration at the RNC in July, I expect Biden to bow out and we’ll get a new candidate at the DNC in August.

        • FuglyDuck@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          9
          arrow-down
          4
          ·
          6 months ago

          biden bowing out after a trump conviction is probably the only thing that’s more dangerous than biden not bowing out.

          The trials don’t begin until late spring, early summer at the earliest, so him bowing out after a conviction is going to be an insanely short window for whoever takes up the canidacy (and is after primaries,) He needs to be bowing out now to let the primary process actually happen.

          Anything else means running the risk of trump winning.

          • jordanlund@lemmy.worldM
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            4
            arrow-down
            4
            ·
            6 months ago

            Oh, the primaries aren’t going to happen. Any replacement, on either side, will have to be at the conventions in July and August.

            • FuglyDuck@lemmy.world
              link
              fedilink
              English
              arrow-up
              5
              arrow-down
              2
              ·
              6 months ago

              which will probably be before trump’s conviction(s).

              I’m okay with trump leaving the next guy with a shit show, but Biden is supposed to be the “rational adult in the room”.

    • z3rOR0ne
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      6
      arrow-down
      6
      ·
      6 months ago

      Yes, it is indeed a choice between eating shit and being flayed alive.

      Like yes…i might survive eating shit, and I definitely don’t want to be flayed alive, but wow…what a choice to have to make. Rock The Vote, 2024. Lol.

      • PugJesus@kbin.social
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        8
        arrow-down
        3
        ·
        6 months ago

        Man, it’s like - every president for the past four decades has been in a shit eating contest, and Biden is the least shit-eating so far - is ‘he eats too much shit’ really the issue you want to make central to his candidacy? Especially when most voters are in favor of continuing to eat shit, for god knows what fucking reason?

        • Drusas@kbin.social
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          2
          ·
          6 months ago

          I’m surprised how many people seem to have forgotten South Park’s episode about deciding whether you want to vote for a douche or a turd sandwich.

        • PhlubbaDubba@lemm.ee
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          3
          arrow-down
          5
          ·
          6 months ago

          Because it’s only “eating shit” to the privileged, for folks that live the difference every second of the day, that difference is between a luxury buffet and being the one who’s actually at risk of being flayed alive.

  • AutoTL;DR@lemmings.worldB
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    4
    arrow-down
    2
    ·
    6 months ago

    This is the best summary I could come up with:


    Biden has faced immense pressure from members of his own party over the United States’ policies in light of the surprise Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7, which killed about 1,200 people and resulted in roughly 240 hostages, including some Americans.

    In a letter published Wednesday on Medium, an anonymous group of Biden’s campaign staffers demanded the president call for a ceasefire in Gaza, citing concerns that not shifting his policy on the issue could hurt his 2024 chances.

    “Like so many others, we continue to be devastated by Hamas’s attack against Israeli civilians on October 7th—it was a vile assault, one that touched the consciousness of the country,” the letter read.

    “Biden for President staff have seen volunteers quit in droves, and people who have voted blue for decades feel uncertain about doing so for the first time ever, because of this conflict,” the Medium letter read.

    The staffers’ letter comes on the same day a U.S. Department of Education policy adviser told the Associated Press that they submitted their resignation in protest of the president’s handling of the war in Gaza.

    According to the progressive Working Families Party, 64 members of Congress—all Democrats—have also called for a ceasefire or cessation of Israel’s military actions in Gaza.


    The original article contains 693 words, the summary contains 209 words. Saved 70%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!

  • phoenixz@lemmy.ca
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    2
    ·
    6 months ago

    Though I agree that Biden should be punished for what he’s doing there, I would please like to remind everyone that the alternative guy would probably just chose to “nuke Gaza or something, problem solved, right?” Or some other insanity like that. Please please, vote Biden, as bad as he is

  • Mammal@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    1
    ·
    edit-2
    6 months ago

    Here’s the thing: Politics is dead.

    You know what else has broad popular support?

    Medicare for All

    Free college

    Well funded public housing

    There’s a much longer list, but you get the idea. It’s not what both parties are the same … it’s that Democrats use the same tired excuses for not doing what is popular and needed.

    In 2024 not only are we going to be asked to once again ignore that Democrats are unable to fulfill the most basic functions of a political party, but we’re going to be told we need to vote for somebody who tacitly approved of ethnic cleansing and genocide.

    That’s a bridge too far for me. Saying that the other guy is worse may be true, but it still doesn’t take away the reality that the Democratic nominate for POTUS is a genocidal monster.

  • Alien Nathan Edward@lemm.ee
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    2
    arrow-down
    2
    ·
    6 months ago

    Getting a free pass for not being Donald Trump isn’t likely to work twice. Biden isn’t walking into this election running against Trump’s miserable failure of a presidency, he’s running on his record now. And his record is shit. It’s a record of going “Well, my hands are tied” when it’s time to help Americans but also having unlimited will and political capital to send our money to fund a genocide. It’s a record of not cancelling student loans, not legalizing marijuana, not meaningfully addressing climate change, not doing anything about healthcare, not doing anything about education. Biden’s presidency has been one that primarily is about chiding the left, calling us idiots and demanding our votes while flat-out telling us he’s not gonna do anything we ask and that we should be grateful that he’s not gonna send the army to kill us like Trump said he would.