Sunday, March 31, 2024

Draft letter to Joe Biden

I plan to send a letter to Joe warning about the damage that current US policy toward Israel can cause to US democracy and civil liberties. I avoided talking about a cease-fire, humanitarian aid to Palestinians, dealing with hostages and other specific policies. Instead, this letter is focused on (1) the damage to Biden’s campaign that US policy toward Israel might cause, and (2) the possible consequences of DJT being re-elected. Is that the best focus? Any comments, corrections, suggestions? 

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I have incorporated comments into some revisions. This is the draft I will mail to Biden today.

FINAL DRAFT

April 1, 2024

The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20500

Re: The 2024 election & Israel policy

Dear President Biden,

As you might imagine, the 2024 presidential electoral college election could be very close. One of maybe a dozen issues or factors, could tip the election to Trump. In turn, that could easily lead to the end of democracy, civil liberties and the rule of law as we have known it at least since the passage of civil and voting rights legislation in the 1960s.

Unfortunately, it is clear that the American experiment in self-governance is on the verge of failing and collapsing into some form of a kleptocratic radical right tyranny. Evidence of an authoritarian threat in the public record is abundant and undeniable. Some Americans see the severity and urgency of the radical right authoritarian threat, but many cannot.

Some of the issues that could give the White House to Trump in 2025 are out of your control. But some are not. One issue you control that could be necessary to tip the election to Trump is US policy toward Israel. You are aware of the bitterness that surrounds this issue. It is tearing the Democratic Party apart. It also deeply alienates or offends independent and other voters who sincerely believe that US policy is complicit in genocide against the Palestinian people. I am one of those voters.

US policy must somehow tie US military aid and political support to Israel implementing an immediate ceasefire, allowing unrestricted humanitarian aid into Gaza, and stopping the ongoing genocide against Palestinian civilians. Absent those bare minimum steps, the US continues to forfeit its moral standing and authority, basically obviating a civilized outcome to the endless, bloody Israel-Palestine misery. Of course, that assumes that our moral standing and authority is not already irretrievably dissipated. It is very late in the game for US policy toward Israel to come to its senses.

Unjustifiable and shockingly immoral as US policy toward Israel arguably is, the re-election of Trump presents a far worse moral and human catastrophe. He is a grave threat to democracy and human well-being. If American democracy falls to Trump’s corrupt, radical right authoritarianism, what is left of democracy in Israel will fall to a radical, bigoted Zionist theocracy. That is almost guaranteed. The theocratic threat to democracy in Israel is obvious and undeniable. So is the threat to the Palestinian people of another Trump presidency.

Much worse than that, Democracies in Europe and elsewhere will fall in due course if America degenerates into some form of a kleptocratic dictatorship-Christian theocracy-plutocracy. With an eye on the enormity of the American authoritarian threat, it is clear that Israel does not know what is best for Israel. It certainly does not always act in the best interests of America. You are no doubt aware of all of this, which is well-documented.

US policy that constitutes no daylight between the US and Israel is catastrophically flawed for both the US, Israel and human-well being. That basis for Israeli foreign policy could wind up throwing the election to Trump. No one can deny that with certainty. Later, the entire human race could enter into a long period of worldwide authoritarianism, human misery, poverty, bigoted oppression and endless climate disasters. One can look to China and Russia to see one possible long-term outcome for our species.

The threat of bigoted, corrupt, American radical right authoritarianism should be terrifying to anyone who supports democracy, civil liberties and the rule of law. Please carefully reconsider US policy toward Israel and the starving Palestinian people. There is urgency to this. The window of opportunity gets narrower every day, assuming it is not too late already. The stakes in this election for democracy could not be higher. US-Israel policy is far less important than the outcome of the 2024 presidential election.

This letter is sent in the spirit of good will and constructive criticism. It also comes with a desperate hope that it is not already too late to limit some of the damage that US policy toward Israel has caused to democracy and world peace so far, maybe reversing some of it.

Sincerely, 
Germaine Descant

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