“The enemy of your enemy is your friend” seems to be the current guiding principle of Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI). The Muslim congresswoman spoke to constituents through a recorded video in the heavily Arab-Islamic city of Dearborn, Michigan, — urging them not to vote for President Biden in the state’s upcoming primary election.
Tlaib turns on own by urging Democrats to vote against Biden in Michigan primary, stumps for progressive org threatening to help Trump https://t.co/4lv9QezuMA
— Zach Halcox 🌐 (@zach_halcox) February 19, 2024
She urged supporters to vote “uncommitted.” The reason: Biden’s handling of the war in Gaza and support of Israel.
Rep. Tlaib said: “We don’t want a country that supports wars, and bombs and destruction; we want to support life. We want to stand up for every single life killed in Gaza … Right now, we feel completely neglected and just unseen by our government. If you want us to be louder, then come here and vote uncommitted.”
Another group went a step further.
Rep. Tlaib’s words were shared on X by an organization called the “Listen to Michigan” campaign, a pro-Palestinian group vehemently opposed to U.S. aid for Israel. They have insinuated that they would use their clout to enable Donald J Trump to win Michigan in 2024.
The Listen to Michigan website states: “Trump only won Michigan in 2016 by about 10,000 votes…Uncommitted Michigan Democrats opposed to Biden’s policy in Gaza can demonstrate that we hold his margin of victory for re-election.”
This strategy smacks of Machiavellianism, in which the desired end justifies any means.
Former President Trump has expressed his distaste in general for endless American involvement in foreign wars. He has said he would conclude the Ukraine war in short order if reelected. Although he has been generally supportive of Israel, he has been non-committal about how he would handle the Israel-Hamas War. Trump could be viewed as the lesser of two evils by pro-Palestinian voting blocks.
The progressive wing of the Democrats may be enough to scuttle the critical battleground state for the president. As the election of 2000 showed, a single swing state can determine the election results. Michigan could play the same role in 2024 as Florida did in 2000.
Rep. Tlaib is the only Palestinian in the United States Congress and is a member of “The Squad” – an informal caucus of eight of the most left-wing and progressive representatives.
