A Biden ally explains her cease-fire call

From: POLITICO West Wing Playbook - Tuesday Feb 06,2024 10:50 pm

Feb 06, 2024

By Ben Johansen, Lauren Egan and Myah Ward

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Last week, the American Federation of Teachers released a resolution calling for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas, leaving the impression that the union, an early backer of President JOE BIDEN’s reelection, was breaking from him on the issue.

Such a chasm is notable in this climate. So, West Wing Playbook called up AFT’s president RANDI WEINGARTEN, to discuss what went into the decision. This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.

You’re an ally of President Biden. But this is a break from him on this issue. Do you wish he would take a different approach to the conflict?

I’m actually not sure this is a break from President Biden. He’s talked about the right of Israel to defend itself. But he’s also warned and cautioned about not making the mistakes that we made after 9/11. The solutions that we propose are not terribly dissimilar than what you've heard from the administration.

The administration wants a diplomatic solution. What we’re saying is that we think that that diplomatic solution should happen now.

In the resolution, you use the term “bilateral” and emphasize that the cease-fire has to be negotiated. Can you explain that difference in terminology?

The difference is that this resolution is forward facing. It talks about a way to get to self determination, freedom, equality, and a shared future. It doesn't freeze the conflict in place. And I think that's why you saw AFT’s entire executive council come together on it. It is condemning the actions that started the war on Oct. 7. But it deeply expresses a path forward that's about self determination, peace and security.

Masses of young people are calling on Biden to support a cease-fire. Do you think the criticism is fair?

We often in America want our presidents to have magic wands so that when we see an injustice around the world or here, they take that magic wand and fix it. I applaud young people for not wanting to see the death of children. And not wanting to see war.

What will happen over the next few months, is it will be clear that it will be Trump versus Biden. It is a choice between having a democracy versus the risks of reelecting someone willing to do a coup because he lost an election.

Do you think the president needs to change his messaging on the issue before it potentially costs him the White House?

I rarely put myself in his shoes so let me just say, I hope they lean into the path towards peace. The path towards releasing all of the hostages. And the path towards humanitarian aid in Gaza. At this point, actions speak louder than words.

I think he’s very much eyeing and ensuring and doing whatever he can to stop the conflict from broadening. He’s trying to get to a long-term, bilateral cease-fire that releases the hostages, that gets Gaza the aid that they need, and long-term peace, particularly the two-state solution.

Should Biden more forcefully condemn Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu?

I’m glad every time I see the secretary of State or the president condemn Netanyahu. It’s appropriate. I think the dilemma is this: What is going to look political and what is needed to get to peace? He shouldn’t do it just because that’s what the base wants to hear. More pressure has to be placed on Netanyahu because I think Netanyahu is a real obstacle to peace. And Biden, in the steps that he has taken, will get us closer to a two state solution than anyone has in a generation.

Since Oct. 7, antisemitism and Islamophobia has spiked — especially in K-12 schools and on college campuses. The Biden administration has prioritized addressing this. Do you have any advice for the White House?

You have to have people who can create conversation and an understanding that you don’t have to always agree on everything.

I have many friends who are Palestinian. I have many friends who are Arab. I have many friends who are Jews. There are things from Oct. 7 on, we could not agree on. We had hard conversations. But we agreed to disagree by starting with the value of team humanity and team respect.

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POTUS PUZZLER

Which president was an avid cat person? 

Thanks to the White House Historical Association for this question!

(Answer at bottom.)

The Oval

11TH HOUR PLEA: Biden delivered what seemed like hastily scheduled remarks Tuesday on the bipartisan border deal as the package appeared on the verge of crumbling, Myah reports. And he blamed the deal’s expected combustion on his likely general election opponent.

“All indications are this bill won’t even move forward to the Senate floor. Why? A simple reason: Donald Trump,” Biden said. “He’d rather weaponize this issue than actually solve it. So for the last 24 hours, he’s done nothing, I’m told, but reach out to Republicans in the House and the Senate and threaten them and try to intimidate them to vote against this proposal.”

Myah writes that “Biden’s message on Tuesday aligned with the strategy the White House and Biden campaign will deploy in the coming months, as they blast Republicans for putting politics above bipartisan policymaking.”

WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE WANTS YOU TO READ: This op-ed by the WSJ Editorial Board, which describes the border security bill as “worth passing” and a “major improvement over the status quo.” The Journal argues that Democrats have continued to make concessions, while House Republicans step back on issues they have claimed in the past to want. If Republicans reject the bill, they will be handing Democrats the argument that the GOP does not want real border security, the editorial notes.

How do we know they want you to read it? Biden referenced it in his comments.

WHAT THE WHITE HOUSE DOESN’T WANT YOU TO READ: This poll from NBC News, which shows three-quarters of voters — including half of Democrats — have either major or moderate concerns about the president’s mental and physical health. That compares to just under half of voters who have the same concerns about former President DONALD TRUMP, and 61 percent of voters who have concerns over Trump’s multiple felony charges.

A HOUSE DIVIDED: Second gentleman DOUG EMHOFF predicted that the Kansas City Chiefs were “likely going to win” the Super Bowl in an interview with NFL Network’s “Good Morning Football.” Tough for Vice President KAMALA HARRIS, a big San Francisco 49ers fan.

“I’m gonna give her space. I’m going to try to give her support. But, you know, I’m thinking [the Chiefs are] likely going to win,” Emhoff said. “But I’m not going to tell her that, so we’re going to edit this out when she sees it.”

Regardless of how the game goes, they plan to eat well Sunday night. “I’m hoping for nachos, and chili and chicken wings, was my request,” Emhoff said.

Madame Vice President, you know how to reach us.

CAMPAIGN HQ

CONCRETE JUNGLE: President Biden will be joined by former Presidents BARACK OBAMA and BILL CLINTON at a fundraiser in the Big Apple next month, NBC News reports. The event may include a moderated discussion with the power trio.

Radio City Music Hall is being considered as a potential venue for the March 28 fundraiser, according to NBC.

MICHIGAN BUILD UP: The Biden campaign is rounding out its reelection team in Michigan with some key hires in the battleground state, the Detroit News’ CRAIG MAUGER reports. MIKE FROSOLONE will serve as campaign manager in the state. He previously served as regional political director at the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee.

— ALYSSA BRADLEY, who most recently worked for the South Carolina Democratic Party, will be Biden’s Michigan communications director.

— TOM GRANDON, who previously worked for Rep. DAN KILDEE (D-Mich.), will be Biden’s Michigan press secretary.

THOSE NEW HIRES HAVE THEIR WORK CUT OUT: A group of Michigan Democrats are encouraging voters who are frustrated with Biden’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war to vote “Uncommitted” in the state’s Feb. 27 primary, NYT’s REID J. EPSTEIN reports. The Listen to Michigan effort is being run by the younger sister of Rep. RASHIDA TLAIB (D-Mich.).

A similar effort pushed in last month’s New Hampshire primary failed to gain much traction. But as Epstein reports, Michigan Democrats have more of a history of using “Uncommitted” as a protest vote.

THE BUREAUCRATS

PERSONNEL MOVES: Biden tapped STEPHANIE PSAKI to be his global health security coordinator, WaPo’s DAN DIAMOND reports. Psaki previously served as the deputy senior director for global health security and biodefense on the National Security Council.

— ISABEL DELGADO-BETZ is now a special assistant in the office of public affairs at the Environmental Protection Agency. She most recently was a legislative intern for Rep. NANETTE BARRAGÁN (D-Calif.).

SHE’S RUNNING: CINDY NAVA has stepped down as senior policy adviser to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development secretary to run for the state Senate in New Mexico, Axios’ RUSSELL CONTRERAS reports. Nava, now a U.S. citizen, was one of the first former DACA recipients to receive a White House presidential appointment.

Agenda Setting

BIPARTISAN PUSH BACK: Last week, a group of bipartisan former Commerce Department officials, including former Commerce Secretaries GARY LOCKE and CARLOS GUTIERREZ, penned a letter to President Biden, urging him to withdraw a proposal that would reinterpret a 43-year-old law known as the Bayh-Dole Act.

The group writes that the proposal would threaten trillions of dollars in future economic growth and poses a “major threat to America’s prosperity.”

HOW DO YOU SOLVE A PROBLEM LIKE WFH? Treasury Secretary JANET YELLEN said Tuesday that bank regulators were paying close attention to national issues of empty office buildings due to work culture changes brought on by the pandemic.

“I do have a concern about commercial real estate,” Yellen told lawmakers during a House Financial Services Committee hearing. “I believe it’s manageable, although there may be some institutions that are quite stressed by this problem.”

We have a solution to getting people back to the office: give them little children and threaten to remove their child care!

What We're Reading

Is Antony Blinken Too Nice to be Secretary of State? (POLITICO’s Nahal Toosi)

The GOP’s True Priority (The Atlantic’s David Frum)

Biden Audio Deepfake Prior to New Hampshire Primary Traced to Texas (Bloomberg’s Katrina Manson and Margi Murphy)

The Oppo Book

NIKKI PAYNE, a tech anthropologist at the White House, has a hobby that would blow many others out of the water. Payne is a published romance author, who, as Axios put it, “pens steamy Jane Austen fan fiction with leading characters of color.”

Payne’s first book, “Pride and Protest,” is a modern retelling of Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice.” Her second book is called “Sex, Lies and Sensibility” and will hit the shelves on Feb. 13.

Maybe the White House is the real hobby …

POTUS PUZZLER ANSWER

President ABRAHAM LINCOLN enjoyed the company of cats so much that first lady MARY LINCOLN stated that his hobby was simply “cats.” As Lincoln left his dog FIDO back home in Illinois, he was gifted two cats, TABBY and DIXIE, by his secretary of State, according to the White House Historical Association.

A CALL OUT! Do you think you have a harder trivia question? Send us your best one about the presidents, with a citation or sourcing, and we may feature it!

Edited by Eun Kyung Kim and Sam Stein.

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