Joe Biden Admin Snubbed by Michigan Officials During State Visit

Biden administration officials traveling to Michigan on Thursday to hold talks with members of the Muslim and Arab community there are reportedly being snubbed as some are said to be refusing to attend.

The White House said on Wednesday that it would send a delegation to listen to the Arab American community's concerns about the ongoing war between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

There has been a significant increase in criticism of the Biden administration among Arab Americans over the United States government's continued support of Israel in its invasion of the Gaza Strip, with some accusing it of being complicit in a genocide—a claim officials have denied.

Detroit's Dearborn suburb is home to America's largest Muslim population. Rashida Tlaib, who represents the district, was the first Palestinian American to be elected to Congress.

White House officials told NBC News on Wednesday that it was hearing from a range of viewpoints on the Israel-Hamas war and had been in regular contact with Muslim and Arab American leaders.

But there are signs that they will hear from few in Michigan. Abed Ayoub, the national executive director of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, wrote late on Wednesday night on X, formerly Twitter, that a meeting with Palestinian American community members was "close to being cancelled because of rejections."

Newsweek reached out to the White House via email for comment on Thursday.

Ayoub also cited an Arab American PAC statement that called on "all people of conscience, especially Arab Americans, to refuse any meeting with the Biden campaign or administration at this time," describing them as "an exercise in cynical optics."

"Basically the Biden admin sent senior-level staff to meetings that could have been held over Zoom," he said.

Ibrahim Zabad, a professor of political science at St. Bonaventure University in New York, suggested on X: "We boycott anyone who participates in this utterly meaningless meeting, whose only objective is to certify the ongoing [alleged] genocide and provide evidence that the Democrats have Arab and Muslim votes."

The White House has said there was no Biden campaign involvement in the meetings.

Since Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants launched a surprise attack on Israel on October 7, killing an estimated 1,200 people, Israel has conducted an intensive campaign of air strikes on Gaza and a subsequent ground offensive with the objective of eliminating Hamas. To date, over 27,000 Palestinians have been killed, according to the Associated Press, citing the Gaza Health Ministry.

Michigan has seen rallies and protests since the conflict broke out in support of Palestinians. Biden has faced criticism from younger Muslims there, who have vowed not to forget his support for Israel come the election.

Some progressive Democrat representatives, among others, have called on Biden to de-escalate the crisis and call for a ceasefire, while Tlaib has repeatedly criticized the administration's support and accused it of helping facilitate a genocide.

In the months since the war began, Biden has appeared to temper his rhetoric from staunch sympathy for Israel in the aftermath of the October 7 attack to highlighting his pressuring Israel to allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza.

While some have suggested this was an attempt to appeal to young and Muslim voters—whose votes Biden is courting ahead of the November election—others have said it was likely a reaction to the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Update 2/8/24, 9:47 a.m. ET: This article was updated to include additional information.