WASHINGTON (AP) — Osama Siblani was eating breakfast in the office when his phone rang with a message from one of his friends. President Joe Bidencounselors. As editor of Arab American News in Dearborn, Michigan, Siblani serves as an occasional sounding board, and the White House wanted to know what he thought of Biden’s recent call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
After months of growing concerns about the suffering of Palestinians in GazaBiden had publicly, albeit vaguely, threatened to cut off US assistance to Israel’s military operations in territory controlled by Hamas.
“These are baby steps,” Siblani said in response. “What we need are giant steps rather than baby steps.”
The text message exchange is an example of the behind-the-scenes communication that the White House has fostered in a moment of anger against the Democratic president over his support for Israel. These informal contacts have become more important as some Muslim and Arab American leaders have turned down opportunities talk to Biden or your advisorsfrustrated by the feeling that their private conversations and public anguish did little or nothing to persuade him to change course.
The White House says it keeps the door open for difficult conversations, but it can be difficult to get people to come through.
“All they’re trying to do is convince us that there’s some kind of movement toward where we want to go,” Siblani said. “But it’s very slow and it’s dragging on. There are more deaths and victims that are happening.”
The most high-profile example of the blockade occurred last week, when a Palestinian-American doctor left a meeting with Biden. But interviews with Muslim and Arab-American leaders reveal how this face-to-face protest was just the most obvious case of a fracture that damaged crucial relationships and closed paths needed to repair them.
“What else can we say to the White House to change course? I was speechless,” said Michigan state Rep. Abraham Aiyash, who met with senior officials in February but has had no contact with them since.
Dan Koh, deputy director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, said the administration wants to “make sure we are as accessible as possible.”
“We understand that some people don’t want to get involved. We respect that,” he said. “But we think the people who got involved felt it was a fruitful discussion.”
Senior White House officials, including national security adviser Jake Sullivan, senior adviser Anita Dunn and chief of staff Jeff Zients, were involved in the disclosure. Biden was briefed on their conversations and Vice President Kamala Harris spoke with Muslims, Arab Americans and Palestinian Americans.
The White House believes it can still find receptive audiences, such as a recent series of meetings with Lebanese-Americans that focused on efforts to prevent the conflict from expanding along Israel’s northern border, where Hezbollah operates.
But the situation presents a challenge for a president who believes in the political power of personal relationships and has valued his history of sitting down with opponents and critics. It could also jeopardize his re-election this year, with some Muslims warning they are not willing to support Biden even if doing so risks returning Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, to the White House.
Salam Al-Marayati, who lives in Los Angeles and heads the Muslim Public Affairs Council, described the attitude as: “Forget them. They have to learn a lesson. And if they lose, that’s the lesson they must learn.”
His disillusionment with Biden began shortly after the start of the war, on October 7, when Hamas killed 1,200 Israelis in a surprise attack. The president described himself as a Zionist during a trip to Israel later that month, emphasizing his belief in the importance of a Jewish state as a guarantee of safety for people who have been historically persecuted around the world.
Al-Marayati heard the statement differently.
“What that meant is that he doesn’t care about the Palestinian people and their displacement,” he said.
Al-Marayati and members of his organization participated in meetings with officials from the National Security Council and the State Department, but the conversations turned sour.
“We realized they weren’t listening,” Al-Marayati said. “Maybe they were agreeing when we talked, but they still had the same policy.”
As the war enters its seventh month, Israel has killed more than 33,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, according to the Ministry of Health based in Gaza, a government agency controlled by Hamas.
U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Democrat from Minnesota who is Muslim, said it was still important to support Biden as a shield against Trump’s return, saying “our democracy is at stake.”
But when it comes to war, Omar said, Biden “is not where we need him to be right now, and it’s our job to push him and get him where we need him to be.”
“It’s incredibly difficult to have any kind of conversation when there is no policy change coming from the White House with regards to stopping arms deliveries to Israel,” she said.
This is a step that Biden is not willing to take, although he has moved closer to that line. Following Biden’s most recent call with Netanyahu, the White House said the president “made clear that U.S. policy toward Gaza will be determined by our assessment of Israel’s immediate action” to protect civilians and allow for increased assistance. humanitarian.
The conversation took place two days after Biden met with Muslim leaders at the White House. Officials originally tried to organize an iftar meal where Biden could join Muslims as they broke their daily Ramadan fast after sunset. But many people declined invitations, turned off by the idea of eating with Biden while he supports Israeli military operations that have brought Palestinians to the brink of starvation.
The White House changed its plans and organized a private meeting about the war. One of the guests was Thaer Ahmad, a Palestinian-American doctor from Chicago who volunteered in Gaza. Angered by the continued flow of US weapons to Israel, Ahmad stood up during the meeting and told Biden he was leaving.
Among the leaders who have held talks with the administration is Wa’el Alzayat, who lives in the Washington, D.C. area and runs the advocacy organization Emgage. The former U.S. State Department official said he texts or calls senior officials to convey the feelings of the Muslim and Arab-American communities and push for a ceasefire.
Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud said he last met with government officials in February, and they have been in touch to ask his opinion since then. His city has the largest Muslim population per capita in the country, and Hammoud said he is always willing to talk if “there is a conversation that could lead to saving a life.”
Some White House meetings have focused on Lebanese-Americans, who fear the war could spiral out of control. One conversation took place last month in the private dining room of a Lebanese restaurant in Detroit. The other was introduced by a Lebanese-American businessman in Houston over the weekend.
Ed Gabriel, who helped organize the talks as chairman of the American Lebanon Task Force, said participants appreciated the opportunity to learn about U.S. efforts in the Middle East. But there is frustration with the situation in Gaza.
“At a certain point the president says: ‘Enough is enough, does it have to be now?’” said Gabriel. “I know what they are trying to do. But after 30,000 deaths, people can’t be expected to understand. And that is the challenge the president has.”
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Cappelletti reported from Lansing, Michigan.
