Biden Says Protests Haven’t Made Him Reconsider Support for Gaza Slaughter

The president made clear that he supports the crackdown on protesters

President Biden said on Thursday that the college protests on campuses across the country have not caused him to rethink his unconditional support for the Israeli slaughter of Palestinians in Gaza.

Biden made the comment when answering a question from a reporter after he delivered brief remarks about the protest movement.

The president portrayed the demonstrations as “violent,” but the only significant violence occurred when police moved to clear out encampments or occupied buildings and when a pro-Israel crowd attacked an encampment at UCLA.

“So, let me be clear. Peaceful protest in America — violent protest is not protected; peaceful protest is. It’s against the law when violence occurs,” Biden said.

“Destroying property is not a peaceful protest. It’s against the law. Vandalism, trespassing, breaking windows, shutting down campuses, forcing the cancellation of classes and graduations — none of this is a peaceful protest,” he added.

Biden made clear that he supported the crackdown on the protests, which has led to over 2,000 arrests across the country so far. “We are a civil society, and order must prevail,” he said.

The president also again appeared to smear the movement as antisemitic despite the fact that Jewish students were involved in the protests. “There should be no place on any campus, no place in America for antisemitism or threats of violence against Jewish students,” he said.

While he condemned the protests, Biden said he did not believe that the National Guard should intervene.

Biden’s position on the protest movement puts him at odds with some Democrats, including the College Democrats of America, the official college outreach arm of the Democratic National Committee, which released a statement strongly backing the demonstrations.

Author: Dave DeCamp

Dave DeCamp is the news editor of Antiwar.com, follow him on Twitter @decampdave.