Answers to Tough Questions

Q: Joe Biden is too old to run again. Does he really have what it takes?

A: Just look at what he’s accomplished during his time in office these past few years! We have a more robust economy, more jobs, more investment in American manufacturing and infrastructure. We have a president and vice president working to protect women’s health and the environment and who are appointing outstanding federal judges. President Biden’s age has  given him wisdom and experience, which I can’t say for all candidates. When I look at his current record–I want him to keep going!

Q: Why are Biden’s approval ratings so low?

A: I think we have to recognize that America has just gone through a rocky few years with the pandemic and the economic strain that resulted. All the statistics show that the economy is getting better—Joe Biden’s policies are working! But it can take time for people to feel comfortable. Meanwhile, the press is delivering a stream of bad news. The media is driven by what succeeds economically for their bottom line, and bad news helps draw an audience. Especially with the rise of Fox, we’ve seen this more and more. So there are almost no high approval ratings anymore, and it’s not at all unusual for presidential approvals to dip. That’s another reason why the polls are wrong these days–remember the red wave that was predicted for the 2022 midterms that simply never came to be?

Q: What about the VP? People say that Kamala Harris doesn’t inspire confidence. What has she actually accomplished?

A: Kamala Harris is a full partner in one of the most successful White House teams ever seen. Compare her to any VP you can think of. She has a hand in every issue on the White House agenda, and she does the work with little attention, which is generally how it goes with vice presidents. Now, look at what’s happening with two issues that get more important every day: Ever since the Dobbs decision, the VP has been taking the lead for the administration, speaking up, holding serious strategy meetings with state and local leaders. Talk to any of the people who have met with her and they’ll tell you that she’s intelligent, committed, and a pleasure to work with! And then when we heard the outrageous plan about how slavery will be taught in Florida, Kamala Harris got on a plane and came to Jacksonville to  call national attention to what's at stake. She is going to keep speaking out about these issues, and people are going to see more of her leadership at work.

Q: So why don't people think she’s ready to be president?

A: Partly because she’s the vice president, and people just don’t think about her that much, which is how that role is meant to be. And partly because, as you may have noticed, she is unlike any of the men who previously held the job. Any of us who went through the Hillary campaign know the difference gender makes in the debate about who can be president–and how unfairly the double standards can be applied to woman candidates. We don’t have any examples of a woman as president, so there is no successful image you can compare her to. And by the way, if you’re worried about whether she is “strong enough politically” to be president, you might remember that she is the child of immigrant parents, who got elected attorney general and then senator by millions of voters in the most populous state in the union!

Q: Why isn’t Biden aggressively highlighting the Trump indictment and other legal issues?

A: Wisely, Biden is focused on talking to the American people about what they care about. Joe Biden has made an intelligent decision that the president should keep talking about doing his job, which means improving people’s lives. That’s why making a political case is up to the rest of us. 

Q: If President Biden is doing so many great things, why isn’t the party doing a better job communicating the president’s legislative successes? 

A: Sometimes it’s up to us to make sure that people know all that he’s gotten accomplished. Here are just a few such examples: 

• He’s growing the economy from the middle out and the bottom up, not the top down.

• He’s lowered prescription drug costs.

• He signed into law the historic, bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which will rebuild crumbling roads and bridges, replace lead pipes, and help provide high-speed internet to every home in America.

• He’s protecting Social Security and Medicare.

• He reached a bipartisan agreement on the debt ceiling. That really showed his understanding of the process and his brilliance in knowing the timing and how to get things done, which he demonstrates over and over again.

Bottom line: Polling shows that the message of success might not be getting through to the American public, but we know what he’s done and how he’s produced concrete results that have changed people’s lives, and we can help spread the word! (And on the flip side, the Republicans have zero favorable policies to talk about.)

Q: Why aren’t the Dems doing more to stand up to antisemites on the left and the right? 

A: Antisemitism is a serious issue. If you look at how politicians respond to it, though, Democratic leaders have publicly condemned instances on both the right and the left, while so many Republicans have been silent on the issue. And, as President Biden said, “Silence is complicity.” The Republican Party is largely silent when it comes to the antisemitic language that its members use. It indicates that they don’t take this seriously or that they simply do not want to take it on.

Biden is committed to addressing antisemitism wherever it raises its head. He released the first national strategy for fighting antisemitism, which is the most ambitious and comprehensive US-led effort to fight antisemitism in history. And before that, Biden tapped Deborah Lipstadt, a world-renowned scholar on antisemitism, to be a special envoy to monitor and combat the issue. Biden takes the issue so seriously that he elevated the role to the rank of ambassador. This meant that her position required Senate approval, and a Republican senator held that up for more than a year, even as these antisemitic attacks got worse! How can Republicans say they’re serious about fighting antisemitism when they won’t even vote in favor of this important position? 

Q: Is the antisemitism plan going to make a difference overall? 

A: It’s groundbreaking, and it’s never been tried before. It outlines 100 steps federal agencies have committed to completing within a year and 100+ more specific calls to action for Congress, civil society, state and local governments, academic institutions, businesses, and religious communities. It is very comprehensive; it’s already making changes, like making sure kosher food is included in food assistance; and there will be more.

In addition to Ambassador Lipstadt, there’s Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff, a member of the inner circle. This is his main focus, and as he said himself, “This plan will save lives.” And we need to be supporting these efforts by supporting the campaign. 

Q: What’s the deal with the Israel relationship? It seems like Biden is keeping Bibi at arm’s length and that Democratic support for Israel is weakening, especially among younger/newer members of Congress.

A: Remember when Joe Biden got off the plane in Israel last year and said, “I am a Zionist”? He means it. With Joe Biden as president, the US commitment to Israel’s security is rock solid. We’ve seen top officials like the secretary of state, the secretary of defense, and the national security advisor meet regularly with their Israeli counterparts; extensive US-Israel joint military exercises; IDF officers stationed in Tampa as part of CENTCOM, which is one of the major Pentagon commands; effective White House support for Israel’s security needs, like the additional funds last year for Iron Dome, and at international forums, including the UN; and strong support for maintaining and expanding the Abraham Accords.

As Joe Biden has said, he’s known Bibi Netanyahu for 40 years. He knows friends can disagree. Biden disagrees with Bibi’s plans for judicial reform, as do a lot of Israelis–but the relationship basics are vital. He recognizes that the demonstrations we’ve seen for the past many months prove that Israel’s democracy is strong and vital. And honestly, can you imagine peaceful protests on that scale in any other country? 

And when we talk about support for Israel, let’s all remember that this is the Democratic Party position: Leaders like Chuck Schumer in the Senate and Hakeem Jeffries in the House are known to be strong supporters of Israel and were elected to the leadership by their Democratic colleagues. 

Q: Why is the administration not working harder on banning assault rifles, at the very least? 

A: The rest of the country might be going numb on this issue, but not Biden. He keeps raising gun violence prevention. He’s just getting started on this–yet another reason why we need to reelect him so that he can finish the job. This is a national tragedy, and Joe Biden knows it. As a senator, he won a tough fight to ban assault weapons. Then Republicans let the ban expire, and the number of killings has gone way up. The president knows we must do more. He did get a bill on gun safety passed last year (the first time in 30 years!), and he has promised to keep going, working to pass a national ban on assault weapons and to hold gun manufacturers accountable.

But let’s face political facts: The president has said he’ll keep pushing–and we know that he will–but to get serious action on guns, we also need votes in Congress. That’s one more reason–one more big reason–we’ve got to win this election: to reelect Joe Biden and Kamala Harris and a Democratic Congress to boot!

Q: What do you say to Republicans who voted against infrastructure and other Democratic accomplishments who are now touting the success in their communities?

A: Sometimes the most effective way to attack this kind of hypocrisy is with humor. Maybe congratulate them for changing their minds and recognizing the wisdom of Joe Biden’s policies?

Q: Given his recent gaffes, how can we know that Joe Biden is competent? 

A: I’m measuring Joe Biden by what he has achieved. And keeping in mind that he grew up with a stutter, I think he speaks incredibly well. Beyond that, compare what he says to what Donald Trump says. This election will be a choice between two candidates–and by every single standard, including how they speak, Joe Biden is the winner. 

Q: What has the Biden administration’s response been to the Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7th?

A: Since the first news of the Hamas attacks, President Biden has been clear that Israel has the right to defend itself, even flying to Israel in the days following the attacks to embrace leaders and hostage families–pictures that went around the world, demonstrating America’s support at a critical time. Now he and his administration are working with other nations in the region to maintain essential material support for Israel; provide humanitarian aid for the citizens of Gaza, who are trapped in a terrible situation; and begin preparing for the post-conflict era in which Hamas no longer has the power to attack Israeli citizens. We cannot stress enough how important Joe Biden has been at this moment to Israel–and how important it is to all of us that he continues to lead.

[[To people calling for a ceasefire]] Hamas broke a ceasefire on October 7th with their attacks, in which they killed, raped, and kidnapped Israelis. They broke the terms of another ceasefire several weeks later, by refusing to return women hostages. A large number of hostages, including young women, are still being held by Hamas today. What is happening to them? How would another ceasefire at this time–if Hamas remains in power–be different?

The facts about Hamas’s brutal violence against women that have emerged from testimony by eyewitnesses and the searing reports of medical examiners who examined the bodies mean this is an issue for every woman–and all the people who care about them. Hamas deliberately chose to rape, torture, and mutilate women and girls as an act of war. It is outrageous that so many organizations supposedly committed to women’s rights have been silent. This is a painful subject to talk about; what must it be like for the women who endured it?? We must speak up; we cannot allow these atrocities to be ignored, as if the lives and bodies of Jewish women do not count. If we do not object, what kind of message do we send to our daughters and granddaughters, to future generations of girls and women? We must make clear that there are real consequences for gender-based violence–even when the women are Jewish!

As for younger voters, the Biden campaign is planning to reach and turn out younger voters around issues important to them. We recognize that this is a particularly difficult time for young Jews, especially for those on college campuses where antisemitism is problematic. As we each do the work of relational organizing throughout this campaign, it is on all of us to reach out to the young people in our networks and listen to them. Be sure they know we support them and want them engaged. This campaign is about their future: With so much at stake, they will be the strongest messengers to their peers. Encourage them to keep speaking up for their values and exercising their power as citizens!