Nervous Biden Campaign Quietly Visits Michigan to Appease Muslim Voters Angry Over Israel Policy

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AP Photo/Evan Vucci

The Biden campaign is quietly holding meetings with Muslim communities in Michigan amid growing concern among his strategists that he is losing their support, according to sources.

Since the attack by Hamas on Israel in October last year, the Democratic Party has faced major internal divisions over Biden’s policy in the Middle East, where his administration has taken a supportive stance towards Israel’s military campaign in the Gaza Strip. 

According to a report from Politico, Biden’s campaign manager Julie Chávez Rodríguez traveled to Michigan on Friday to meet with leaders from Michigan’s Arab and Palestinian-American communities.

The meetings are part of a strategy to shore up support for his administration’s foreign policy ahead of November’s presidential election, where Michigan is considered a key battleground state in the long race for the White House. 

Politico notes:

However, several Arab-American and Muslim leaders declined the campaign’s invitation for a meeting, including Michigan state Rep. Alabas Farhat, a Democrat who represents the heavily Muslim area of Dearborn, a small city in the suburbs of Detroit. 

Farhat told Politico:

The report also revealed that “gatherings were meant to address a range of issues facing various minority communities,” indicating that the Biden campaign may have little to offer Muslim voters concerning any serious shift in foreign policy. 

Meanwhile, The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that Biden’s problem extends well beyond Michigan. Senior aides are said to be “increasingly worried that his support for Israel’s war in Gaza risks damaging his re-election prospects amid cratering support from young voters.” 

The Journal reported: 

Just this week, a Biden campaign rally aimed at promoting the right to abortion was repeatedly interrupted by protesters angry over his handling of the conflict. 

In November, a poll from NBC News found that just 34 percent of voters approved of Biden’s handling of the ongoing conflict, with 56 percent disapproving. Opposition was lower among those under the age of 35, with around 70 percent expressing disapproval of his current stance. 

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