White House officials plan to meet with Muslim leaders in Michigan as President Joe Biden pursues former President Donald Trump in several battleground states, four sources familiar with the plan said. told the Detroit News.
Since the terrorist group Hamas invaded Israel on October 7, Mr. Biden and his administration have pledged support to the country. The president’s pro-Israel stance has caused Muslims to abandon support for Biden, who is trailing Trump in a hypothetical showdown and faces tough polls. Amid heightened tensions, multiple White House officials plan to meet with elected officials and leaders of Michigan’s Arab and Muslim communities to discuss policy related to the Israel-Hamas war. This was revealed by four people familiar with the plan. Said Detroit News.
Those scheduled to visit include Tom Perez, director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, John Feiner, vice president for national security, and American Muslims at the White House, officials told The Detroit News. They include community liaison officer Mazen Basrawi.
Julie Chavez Rodriguez, Biden’s reelection campaign manager, was scheduled to meet with Muslim leaders in Michigan in January, but the elected officials ultimately declined the invitation, The Detroit News reported. The meeting was scheduled to be held in Dearborn, Michigan, and included mayors and state legislators.
A truck carries a sign calling for a ceasefire from President Biden and Congress as it heads toward the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC, on January 16, 2024. The heaviest snowfall in more than two years blanketed the Washington metropolitan area, closing schools and grounding flights across the region. (Photo provided by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
Biden’s pro-Israel stance has faced backlash not only from the Muslim community but also from those in his own administration. The National Islamic Democratic Council, made up of Democratic leaders from battleground states such as Michigan, Pennsylvania and Ohio, pledged in October to withhold support from the president unless he called for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war. In November, a coalition of State Department employees accused the president of “spreading misinformation” related to the Israel-Hamas war. (Related: Anti-Israel Biden staff protest in Washington DC derailed by 3 inches of snow)
After Biden won Michigan by about 150,000 votes in the 2020 presidential election, the president began to lose support from Muslim and Arab communities. About two-thirds of Michigan Muslims and Arab Americans said in November they would not vote for Biden in the 2024 election, according to a Lake Research Partners poll first reported by NBC News. .
Mr. Biden is chasing Mr. Trump in virtual matchups in several key battleground states, including Arizona, Georgia, Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Nevada and North Carolina. according to I responded to a Morning Consult/Bloomberg survey. Mr. Trump has a lead of up to 9 points over Mr. Biden in each state.
