One of the shortcomings of those who criticize Israel’s conduct in Gaza is their inability to consider Israel’s response in a historical perspective. The same can be said for those who criticize Biden’s latest action. Many claim it’s the worst thing a president has done to Israel during wartime.
I do not agree with Biden’s approach either from a strategic or political angle. However, it is a mistake to overstate its effect and to say that it’s unique. Making such a claim shows a lack of knowledge of the relationship between prior U.S. presidents and the State of Israel.
I will not even list the presidents whose actions concerning Israel during peacetime raised condemnation from supporters of Israel; there is more than enough to mention during wartime.
Harry Truman is revered by many as the president who went against the State Department and pushed for the creation and then recognition of the State of Israel. What is not frequently mentioned is the United States Arms Embargo, starting December 5, 1947, after the UN voted for the creation of the state of Israel, which continued through the 1948 War of Independence. On its face, the arms embargo was neutral, since it applied to all sides in the conflict. However, the effect was to hurt Israel. Unlike today, where Israel has a respected trained military force with advanced weapons, the Jews fighting the War of Independence had few weapons. In contrast, the embargo had negligible impact on the Arab armies who attacked Israel, since they were well-supplied with weapons. Thus, Truman’s policy of an arms embargo should have led to the demise of the State of Israel. It was a miracle that it did not. However, that does not lesson the fact of how despicable the policy was. Truman played the good guy in supporting the creation of the State of Israel but instituted a policy that would help cause its destruction.
The next war was the Sinai War in 1956. Israel, France, and Great Britain attacked Egypt because Egypt’s President Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal. Israel wanted Nasser removed from power because they thought he was a danger. Israel got within ten miles of the Suez Canal and then stopped the fighting due to pressure from President Eisenhower, although they had not achieved their objectives of getting Nasser out of power and removing Egyptian control of the canal. Moreover, the United States voted for UN resolutions publicly condemning the invasion. The United States pressed Israel to withdraw from the Sinai Peninsula and Gaza Strip after Suez, which included the threat of withholding aid and economic sanctions. After the war, the United States rejected Israel’s requests for all but limited quantities of defensive weapons.
Nasser ended up pushing for war against Israel in 1967. Israel engaged in a preemptive strike and won the Six-Day War. Almost from the beginning of the war, the United States pushed for a ceasefire.
In the 1973 Yom Kippur War, the United States put pressure on Israel to stop the war after Israel turned the tide and was ready to have a decisive victory.
President Ronald Reagan was upset about Israel’s invasion of Lebanon and prohibited Israel to be provided with cluster bombs. There had been an outcry that Israel was unnecessarily causing civilian casualties. He also held up providing 75 F-16 fighter jets to Israel unless they withdrew from southern Lebanon and supported a UN resolution condemning Israel for its attack on Iraq nuclear facilities.
For many years, the United States was dependent on Arab oil, so they had to balance that need with supporting Israel. That could explain various administrations taking positions against Israel’s interests. The Arab oil producers flexed their muscles with the 1973 oil embargos, which damaged the American economy. Today, America is no longer dependent on foreign oil. The only effect is that when the price of foreign oil increases, the price at home increases. It appears that President Biden is also dealing with conflicting forces, support of Israel and those on the left, especially young voters, who are supporting the Palestinians, BDS, and cutting off military aid. As other past presidents have done, Biden is taking positions to deal with conflicting interests, some of which are not in line with Israel’s.
You can criticize Biden’s position, but from a historical context it is not unique, and is mild in comparison to actions of prior presidents. We like to pretend that previous administrations had fully supported Israel at its time of crisis, but the evidence says otherwise.
Warren S. Hecht is a local attorney. He can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
