Biden faces no re-election calls as shocking poll sounds Dems alarm

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
7 Nov 2023 09:57
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The US presidential elections are in about exactly a year from now, and, so far, US President Joe Biden has been reportedly trailing behind former US President Donald Trump.

President Joe Biden walks to board Marine One at Gordons Pond in Rehoboth Beach, Del., Monday, Nov. 6, 2023 (AP)

Democrat US President Joe Biden trailed behind Republican frontrunner, former President Donald Trump, in five out of six swing states in an opinion poll, sounding the alarm among the Democrat party, prompting senior officials to urge Biden not to seek re-election.

According to the poll, Biden is ahead of Trump only in Wisconsin, among the swing states which include Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, and Pennsylvania. It is important to note that in 2020, Biden won all six states in the face of Trump, however, today, the poll showed that the former President is now ahead in five out of the six states by an average of 48% to 44%.

Even if Trump's support in those states would erode by about 6%, in the event he got convicted of criminal charges, the race would remain too close. Not only that, but Biden's age concerns keep reemerging as a significant topic according to the findings of the poll, as suggested by The Guardian.

In battleground states, the poll showed that voters trust Trump more than Biden in handling the economy by a 22-point margin. A total of 71%, including 54% of his own supporters, deemed Biden "too old", while merely 39% of respondents had the same opinion of the 77-year-old Trump.

The former strategist for President Barack Obama, David Axelrod, posted on X: "It’s very late to change horses; a lot will happen in the next year that no one can predict & Biden’s team says his resolve to run is firm," adding. "He’s defied CW [conventional wisdom] before but this will send tremors of doubt thru the party – not ‘bed-wetting,’ but legitimate concern."

Moreover, Axelrod noted that if Biden decided to run for president again, "he will be the nominee of the Democratic Party," warning that "what he needs to decide is whether that is wise; whether it's in HIS best interest or the country's?"

Only @JoeBiden can make this decision. If he continues to run, he will be the nominee of the Democratic Party. What he needs to decide is whether that is wise; whether it's in HIS best interest or the country's?
— David Axelrod (@davidaxelrod) November 5, 2023

On his part, Andrew Yang, who lost to Biden in the 2020 Democratic primary, claimed that "if Joe Biden were to step aside, he would go down in history as an accomplished statesman who beat Trump and achieved a great deal. If he decides to run again it may go down as one of the great overreaches of all time that delivers us to a disastrous Trump second term."

If Joe Biden were to step aside, he would go down in history as an accomplished statesman who beat Trump and achieved a great deal. If he decides to run again it may go down as one of the great overreaches of all time that delivers us to a disastrous Trump second term.
— Andrew Yang🧢⬆️🇺🇸 (@AndrewYang) November 6, 2023

Charlie Sykes, host of the Bulwark podcast and a former conservative radio host, wrote on X: "Ultimately, 2024 is not about re-electing Joe Biden. It is about the urgent necessity of stopping the return of Donald J Trump to the presidency. The question is how."

Amid increasing tensions across West Asia and Europe, the US elections could hint toward major decisions vis-à-vis foreign policy approaches to topics such as the US occupation in Syria and Iraq, and decisions regarding the Gulf states, "Israel", and Ukraine.

State Dept officials criticize Biden's Middle East policy: Politico

A "sensitive but unclassified" memo filed to the Dissent Channel in the US Department of State obtained by Politico shows that officials in the State Department are critical of the Biden administration's policy towards "Israel": arguing that the US should be willing to be publicly criticize the occupation.

Politico interprets the message as being indicative of increasing distrust by many mid-level and low-rank officials in Biden's policy towards the Middle East.

The two main requests put forth by the memo are:

The US should support a ceasefire in Gaza.
The US should publicly criticize Israeli measures rather than keeping them private.

The memo contends that the current US policy "contributes to regional public perceptions that the United States is a biased and dishonest actor, which at best does not advance, and at worst harms, U.S. interests worldwide."

“We must publicly criticize Israel’s violations of international norms such as failure to limit offensive operations to legitimate military targets,” the memo reads.

"When Israel supports settler violence and illegal land seizures or employs excessive use of force against Palestinians, we must communicate publicly that this goes against our American values so that Israel does not act with impunity."

The memo, which was reportedly written by two midlevel officials, affirms that while they do believe "Israel" has a right to "self-defense", the crimes perpetrated against Palestinian civilians are unacceptable.