Republicans are using a narrative of chaos and ‘philosophical divisions on Israel’ among Democrats to sink Biden’s campaign

Republicans are using a narrative of chaos and ‘philosophical divisions on Israel’ among Democrats to sink Biden’s campaign

Republicans have identified recent college protests against Israel’s war in Gaza as the core of an election campaign narrative of chaos that they hope can be used to sink Joe Biden’s presidency.

The approach was bluntly crystallised by Tom Cotton, the Republican senator Arkansas, in a recent television interview when he mocked the encampments that have sprung up in recent weeks as “little Gazas” and lambasted the president for a perceived failure to unequivocally denounce instances of antisemitism.

  • rayyy@lemmy.world
    513·
    6 months ago

    So what’s new? The right inserted provocateurs into BLM demonstrations to create violence and bad press. This time their provocateurs prime aim is to alienate Biden voters. It is so easy to lead people.

    • FenrirIII@lemmy.world
      3416·
      6 months ago

      Just look at Lemmy. There’s tons of anti-Biden posters who twist everything with misinformation and deception

      • Tinidril@midwest.socialEnglish
        272·
        6 months ago

        That’s what happens when the establishment uses their stranglehold over mainstream media to strong arm a primary. The right wing is going to right wing, and misinformation is their whole game. Democrats can learn to be a party that can win in that environment, or they can let institutional inertia destroy the country. They seem to be leaning to the latter.

      • disguy_ovahea@lemmy.world
        269·
        6 months ago

        Yup. They’re using the same voter disengagement strategies that Republicans have used for decades. It’s never about how great Trump is. It’s always about how you should just stay home in November because Biden sucks too.

        Abstaining from voting will lead to Trump’s second term. Inaction is action.

        Edit: The downvotes without rebuttal are proof of this statement.

        • Passerby6497@lemmy.worldEnglish
          11·
          6 months ago

          Abstaining from voting will lead to Trump’s second term. Inaction is action

          And boy do they get butthurt when you point out that there are only two choices that are realistically possible, and not voting or voting third party inherently favors republicans.

          Let’s not forget that the left abandoning the democrats in the 70s and 80s didn’t make the party move left, they moved right and we got 3rd way dems.

          • disguy_ovahea@lemmy.world
            21·
            6 months ago

            That’s exactly what we should expect to happen. Inversely, if Democrats maintained control for extended periods of time, all candidates would be forced to adopt more progressive platforms in order to capture more of the vote. Every time liberals and progressives abstain and Republicans take office, the impact is twofold.

            • Passerby6497@lemmy.worldEnglish
              2·
              6 months ago

              Agreed. It’s really sad how many people are unwilling or unable to think about 2nd and 3rd order consequences to actions.

      • Oofnik@kbin.social
        239·
        6 months ago

        “Everyone that disagrees with me is a shill”

        Listen, I’m going to hold my nose and vote for Biden in November because a Trump victory risks the end of democracy in the US, but I’m so tired of this idea that all criticism of him, and anyone who disagrees with us about whether to vote for him, is a victim of some kind of conspiracy.

        That isn’t to say that people don’t want to exploit those divisions and will try to spread misinformation to do so, but that isn’t an excuse to dismiss everyone you disagree with either.

        • JaymesRS@literature.cafeEnglish
          85·
          6 months ago

          In a normal media environment I’d agree with you completely, the problem is that we have a media apparatus that is set up as a propaganda arm of a political party and mainstream media thinks that balance is that any negative news story must be balanced by a negative news story in the other direction (“Trump incites riot and Biden mispronounced his granddaughters name, why both could mean the collapse of their campaigns” type coverage), instead of being balanced in standards of reporting.

          I don’t know what the solution is. My strategy though is to work down ballot to get better people in positions to push Biden and get him more flexibility to make better choices and changes.

      • Neato@ttrpg.networkEnglish
        116·
        6 months ago

        Biden does anything good: “Oooh where was all this for the last 4 years?”

        Gets tiring to see.

    • zerog_bandit@lemmy.world
      28·
      6 months ago

      Just like January 6th was really Antifa right? This whole episode has shown me that the left is just as susceptible to wielding misinformation as the right.