Just weeks before the 2020 election, Michigan Democratic Rep. Rashida Tlaib pressed undecided voters in Michigan to throw their support behind Joe Biden.
In a virtual rally alongside other lawmakers, the first Palestinian American woman to serve in Congress was clear in her enthusiasm for Biden, arguing that he would create a better future for Americans.
“This election … has to be a huge turnout, one that for me has to speak volumes. People say your vote is your voice; well, I want the voice to be a bullhorn,” she said, adding, “I want it to be so loud and so echoey that people understand exactly what we all believe in, which is, we believe that government must be about people.”
More than three years later, the silence from Tlaib and other Muslim leaders on the president’s 2024 reelection bid is speaking volumes as Biden continues to back Israel in its war against Hamas in Gaza.
Tlaib – a liberal firebrand who represents parts of Detroit and its suburbs – accused the president in November of supporting a Palestinian “genocide,” straining her relationship with Biden. Her office declined multiple requests for comment on whether she would support the president in his reelection bid.
The distance between Tlaib and the White House is reflective of the work Biden must do to repair the relationship with a key part of his coalition. Many Arab Americans and Muslim voters who have spoken to CNN say they will not support Biden’s reelection efforts due to his unwavering support of Israel and failure to call for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza. But the problems go beyond that – Democratic strategists who spoke to CNN are warning that the president may struggle to find surrogates willing to take on the task of speaking to key voter groups such as Muslims, Arab Americans and angered progressives.
The administration appears to be…
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