But the U.S. still has a crucial role to play in preventing a war in Gaza.
With the conflagration between Israel and Hamas turning white-hot on Wednesday, the White House roused itself into something resembling action. But it was all very late — and very lame. There was a flurry of phone calls: President Joe Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu; Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas (and for good measure, with Netanyahu); and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan spoke with Qatar’s foreign minister. Blinken said the U.S. is “engaged across the board and pushing on de-escalation not only with Israelis and Palestinians but also with other partners who are amplifying our voice.” Translation: There will be more phone calls. Other forms of communication are also being deployed. Having sent Abbas a letter on Tuesday, Biden then dispatched a mid-ranking American diplomat — a deputy assistant secretary of state — to meet with Israeli and Palestinian leaders. Speaking with reporters, the president expressed his “expectation and hope is that this’ll be closing down sooner than later.” His choice of words betrayed his deep reluctance to get involved in the conflict: “Expectation and hope” is a variation of “thoughts and prayers,” the rhetorical pablum that American politicians proffer in place of policy when faced with endemic problems (gun violence, for example) they’d prefer not to confront.
