THE Joe Biden joined forces with Barack Obama and Bill Clinton at a glitzy event in New York.
The purpose was to raise money for the current president’s election campaign, defending the White House’s handling of the Gaza crisis, but there was no shortage of stories.
Biden, who flew to New York on Air Force One with Obama, took part in a debate with Clinton, moderated by “The Late Show” host Stephen Colbert, at the iconic Radio City Music Hall before thousands of guests. , with organizers saying the event raised more than $25 million for the Democratic president’s re-election campaign.
But a group of pro-Palestinian protesters interrupted the debate at various points, chanting slogans of White House support for Israel’s war against Hamas, which has left more than 30,000 Palestinians dead in the Gaza Strip.
“Shame on you, Joe Biden,” shouted one protester. “Your hands are stained with blood,” screamed one woman, while a third warned of the risk of a nuclear conflict with Russia: “you’ve lost your f@m@m@n minds!”.
Obama and Clinton were quick to defend Biden’s actions
Obama and Clinton tried to explain to the public the difficulties the US president faces in handling the Gaza crisis: A president must be able to support Israel on the one hand and at the same time fight for the Palestinians to have greater access to food, medical supplies and a future state. “It’s a lonely place,” Obama said. “One of the realities of the presidency is that the world has a lot of joy and beauty, but it also has a lot of tragedy and cruelty.”
“It’s understandable that people, often, want to feel that it’s clean how these decisions are made. But a president doesn’t have that luxury,” Obama said. And when a protester interrupted him, the former president snapped back: “You can’t just talk and not listen… That’s what the other side does.”
Obama and Clinton also defended Biden’s handling of the economy, stressing that indicators and data show he has fared much better than Donald Trump’s administration.
A star-studded event with an expensive ticket
Before the event, the motorcade carrying the three presidents passed hundreds of demonstrators protesting Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza, another sign that young voters and other progressives, who voted for Biden in the previous election, are angry with the support offered by the White House to Israel following the Hamas attacks last October.
Tickets for the event cost between $250 and $500,000, and featured musicians such as Lizzo, Queen Latifah, BenPlatt, Cynthia Erivo and Lea Michele.
Some of the attendees, who paid a hefty ticket price of more than $100,000, had the opportunity to pose with Biden, Obama and Clinton in the lens of famous photographer Annie Leibovitz.
The appearance of Obama and Clinton alongside the 81-year-old Biden, whose age has fueled doubts about his ability to carry out his duties, was intended to be a show of unity and a rallying cry among Democratic voters. According to a recent poll by Ipsos on behalf of Reuters, Biden’s popularity is at 40%, in a difficult battle with the 77-year-old Trump ahead of the November 5 election.