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WASHINGTON — Foreign policy rarely features heavily in presidential debates. But with a war raging in the Gaza Strip and no cease-fire to tout, President Joe Biden may find himself on the defensive in tonight’s debate with former President Donald Trump.
Nearly a month has passed since Biden unveiled a three-phase plan meant to halt the fighting that has pulled the United States dangerously close to involvement in another Middle East war. A cease-fire between Israel and Hamas remains out of reach, despite the Biden administration’s months-long effort on a deal to free the remaining hostages and permanently end the war that has killed nearly 38,000 Palestinians and pushed hundreds of thousands to the brink of famine and disease.
Recent polls show a majority of Americans disapprove of Biden's handling of the Gaza war, although few list it among their top issues in 2024. Frustration over Biden’s earlier resistance to a cease-fire and continued refusal to curb US weapons transfers to Israel — bar one shipment of 2000-pound bombs — is especially pronounced among Arab Americans, progressives and young voters.
