Biden Facing a Mutiny 'at All Levels' in State Department: Report
Talk to a State Department official and he or she might say Israel can go ahead and defend itself — but not too much.
The fact that the United States is promoting Israel’s retaliation after Hamas terrorist attacks killed 1,400 people has disrupted things at the State Department.
“There’s basically a mutiny brewing within State at all levels,” one department official said, according to a HuffPost report Thursday.
Among those in the State Department dissenting from the Biden administration’s support of Israel is Josh Paul, an 11-year veteran of the Bureau of Political Affairs whose objection led him to resign Wednesday.
Paul explained his decision in a LinkedIn post.
“Let me be clear: Hamas’ attack on Israel was not just a monstrosity; it was a monstrosity of monstrosities,” he said.
“I also believe that potential escalations by Iran-linked groups such as Hezbollah, or by Iran itself, would be a further cynical exploitation of the existing tragedy,” Paul continued.
“But I believe to the core of my soul that the response Israel is taking, and with it the American support both for that response, and for the status quo of the occupation, will only lead to more and deeper suffering for both the Israeli and the Palestinian people – and is not in the long term American interest,” he said.
“This Administration’s response — and much of Congress’ as well — is an impulsive reaction built on confirmation bias, political convenience, intellectual bankruptcy, and bureaucratic inertia,” Paul said. “That is to say, it is immensely disappointing, and entirely unsurprising. Decades of the same approach have shown that security for peace leads to neither security, nor to peace.
“The fact is, blind support for one side is destructive in the long term to the interests of the people on both sides.”
Expecting to be ostracized by colleagues for his dissent, Paul said many of them were contacting him to express their agreement, HuffPost reported.
The State Department has a “dissent channel” that allows private divergence from announced policy, an outlet dating back to the Vietnam War days. The department’s response to Paul’s resignation made reference to that fact.
“One of the strengths of this department is that we do have people with different opinions,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement, according to HuffPost. “We encourage them to make their opinions known.”
“Secretary [of State Antony] Blinken has spoken to this on a number of occasions, when he’s said that he welcomes people exercising the dissent channel,” Miller said.
“He finds it useful to get conflicting voices that may differ from his opinion. He takes it seriously, and it causes him to reflect on his own thinking in terms of policymaking.”
Both President Joe Biden and Blinken have underscored the right of Israel to defend itself as long as it stays within the confines of international law.
Wednesday, the State Department’s mission to the United Nations vetoed a U.N. resolution condemning all violence against civilians and offering humanitarian aid to Gaza; the resolution included an admonition against Hamas.
U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said the effort was premature and that diplomatic efforts needed to play out. She was also critical of the fact the resolution did not underscore the right of Israel to self-defense.
While “diversity is our strength” is a mantra for many leftists, diverse thoughts are creating turmoil in the State Department where many occupants of government positions are left-leaning.
Israel is always a problem for them: They know there needs to be a careful balance of what might be anti-Zionist sentiments against charges of anti-Semitism.
Biden and Blinken’s voiced support for Israel is causing stress, and language on the dissent channel is severe, according to HuffPost.
Paul has said concern about free expression on the channel arose after House Republicans sought access to it following the Biden administration’s abandonment of Afghanistan.
HuffPost also reported a “culture of silence” at the State Department regarding expression of opinions about Israel and the surrounding region, with one even voicing “shame” for currently working for the U.S. government.
Following his return from the Middle East, Blinken called for State Department staffers “to sustain and expand the space for debate and dissent that makes our policies and our institution better.”
For his part, Paul told CNN he does not believe there is “space for debate on the issue.”
Legal frameworks designed to keep American weapons out of the hands of those violating human rights are failing, he said in a New York Times interview.
“In the past, there has been effective or at least vocal pushback from those within the State Department responsible for human rights to look at some of these issues and not rush forward,” Paul told CNN.
That usually includes Congress, he said, but congressional opposition is lacking.
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