The Intercept - White House Staffers to Biden: “You Are Running Out of Time” on Gaza

The letter urges President Joe Biden to follow through on an ultimatum his administration issued to Israel over humanitarian aid.

Shawn Musgrave
November 19 2024, 2:26 p.m.



A group of White House staffers sent a letter of dissent on Monday over the Biden administration’s decision not to enforce its own ultimatum over the Israeli government’s restriction of humanitarian aid to Gaza. With just weeks until President-elect Donald Trump begins his second administration, the letter is a plea for President Joe Biden to “take simple and immediate action to drastically mitigate the humanitarian crisis.”

“You are running out of time to do the right thing, but decisive action could save precious lives in the next two months,” reads the letter. Twenty “current, full-time employees of the White House,” who were not named for fear of professional retaliation, drafted the letter.

The Intercept spoke with two senior White House staffers who helped draft the letter, which was directed to Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and a variety of senior policy advisers.

“I’m thinking a lot about the concept of legacy and ending well,” said one of the staffers. “I personally want to be seen as someone who keeps my commitments and want to be part of an administration that keeps its commitments too.”

The letter follows the State Department’s announcement last week that it would not restrict military aid despite Israel’s failure to meet concrete demands issued in October.

/snip