In 1982, then-Senator Joe Biden met with Israel’s leader amid its bloody invasion of Lebanon. Biden expressed support for the campaign, and even speculated the US would be similarly justified in bombing Canadian cities in retaliation for militant attacks.
  • givesomefucks@lemmy.worldEnglish
    91·
    11 months ago

    Biden was telling them to chill out, because he was worried it would lead to less aid for Israel…

    He wasn’t trying to call for peace, he was asking for less obvious war crimes.

    Without quoting any of his specific comments, Troy says that Biden warned Begin that “eroding support for Israel” might endanger future US aid. Begin seems to have taken this as a threat to cut off aid if Israeli policy didn’t change, and Troy quotes him railing that Israel would “stand by” its “principles . . . with or without your aid.”

    Honestly, though, everything we know about the way Senator Biden positioned himself on the issue at the time makes it more likely that he was speaking as a supporter of US aid worried that he and his friends wouldn’t be able to deliver it in the future. But what exactly was his concern?

    Now that it’s 40 some years later and he’s a party leader and president (also, 40 fucking years older) I guess he’s not as worried about how Israel’s war crimes might result in less aid to Israel.