It is impossible to overstate just how terrible Joe Biden’s foreign policy has been over his 50-year career in politics. I dedicate a substantial portion of my New York Times bestselling book, Breaking Biden, to exactly that. However, much of his most disastrous decisions have been undersold to the public, ignored by our media, forgotten, or some combination thereof.
He has been a horrendous ally to Israel, the world’s lone Jewish state, a beacon of democracy and freedom in a region of the world known for anything but.
Though Joe Biden appears to be making an effort today, he is decades late to this battle. Not to mention, he is doing the absolute bear minimum to correct anti-Semitic forces around the world like the New York Times, Justin Trudeau, Rashida Tlaib, and others who falsely blamed the Gaza hospital blast from last night on the Jews. Lies like these, when allowed to percolate like this one was, are toxic. They further inflame tensions, set back negotiations and lead to more violence.
Instead of forcefully pushing back on the fake news, which would lead to more calm, Biden was meek, as usual.
Here are some of the key lowlights from his career, in no particular order.
- Trying to Revive Iran Nuclear Deal (JCPOA)
He has spent most of his first term trying to revive the disastrous Iran nuclear deal, over the objections of allies Saudi Arabia and Israel. This deal was not particularly popular when it was codified it in 2015 and probably only took effect because the Washington political establishment wanted to give Obama/Biden a “win.” Since becoming President, Biden has allowed Iran to make progress toward becoming a nuclear power; the U.N. nuclear watchdog found earlier this year that Iran has enriched uranium to near weapons-grade.
Iran wants to wipe Israel off the map, and Biden is helping it make progress toward nuclear weapons.
Full stop.
- Funding the Funders of Terrorism
Joe Biden restored funding to Iran and Palestinian organization that had been frozen by President Trump due to objections that the funding could easily be diverted to terrorism. Since Hamas’s terror attacks on October 7 that killed 1,400 (that number will go up; there are near 200 hostages at the time of this writing), Biden has refused to freeze $6 billion that the United States had recently unfrozen in a hostage deal but has yet to reach Iran. And as we all know, money is fungible: that money will end up supporting terrorism.
Recall that the Obama/Biden administration also airlifted Iranians $400 million in cash, delivered on cargo pallet, as part of a $1.7 billion payment. As I noted in a piece arguing that Joe Biden doesn’t care about national security, “Who sends pallets of cash to people who want the United States (and Israel) wiped off the map? Barack Obama and Joe Biden, apparently.”
Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi speaks during a rally outside the former U.S. embassy in the capital Tehran on November 4, 2022, to celebrate the 43th anniversary of the Iran hostage crisis against Americans. (ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)
- Staffing the Pentagon with Fake “Experts” Who Are Compromised by Iran
Speaking of the pallets of cash, the journalist who broke that explosive story, Jay Solomon, is hot on what is shaping up to be another bombshell. Biden’s Iran envoy, Robert Malley, who was previously the chief negotiator for the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, had his security clearance suspended for allegedly mishandling classified information. The FBI is now investigating Malley over his handling of state secrets. A recently uncovered cache of emails revealed that several top aides to Malley, including one now working in the Pentagon, were compromised by an Iranian influence operation dating back to 2014.
This is the least well-known but most fascinating entry on this list.
- Bungling the Afghanistan Withdrawal
Iran began planning the attack on Israel only after the U.S. withdrew from Afghanistan. Not only did the catastrophe seemingly embolden Iran, it potentially armed terrorists who attacked Israel. Reports claim that abandoned U.S. weapons have ended up in the hands of Hamas. I document all of the weapons and vehicles we left behind – over $7 billions worth – in Breaking Biden. They immediately ended up on the black market where terrorists could buy them.
- Alienating Saudi Arabia
Biden played up concerns about Saudi Arabia’s human rights record—likely to appease his Jamal Khashoggi-obsessed base—while trying to embrace the barbarous Iranian regime. Biden delayed progress toward an historic peace deal between the Arab state and Israel, buying precious time for Iran and Hamas.
- Snubbing Netanyahu
After Benjamin Netanyahu became Israel’s prime minister in last year, Biden spent months snubbing Israel’s duly elected government — all in the name of democracy, of course.
President Joe Biden meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the sidelines of the 78th United Nations General Assembly in New York City on September 20, 2023. (JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)
- Taking Three Days to Condemn Hamas
Hamas committed the worst attack on Jews since the Holocaust, and it took the American president three full days to condemn Hamas. He did have time in the interim to host a barbecue at the White House with a live band.
This is unbecoming behavior for the “leader of the free world.”
- Pushing for a U.S. Consulate for Palestinians in Jerusalem, not Ramallah
The Biden administration announced it would illegally open a consulate for Palestinians in Jerusalem. Biden eventually backed off the decision amidst backlash from Israel and concerns about international law.
- Moving to Defund Israeli Academic Institutions in West Bank
Biden moved to reverse a decision by Trump to allow federal funding to go to Israeli academic institutions in the West Bank.
- Rejoining anti-Israel UN Organizations Like UNESCO and the UN Human Rights Council
Biden returned the United States to UNESCO, which claims Israel illegally occupies parts of Jerusalem. He also rejoined the UN Human Rights Council, which recently held a moment of silence for the deaths of those “in Palestinian territory” without mentioning the attacks on innocent Israelis.
As Biden traveled to Israel on Air Force One on a solidarity visit to Israel, First Lady Jill Biden hosted a celebration at the White House marking the U.S. return to the anti-Israel UNESCO.
The United Nations is perhaps best known for its feckless and anti-Israel resolutions. A recent one declared the country’s founding a “catastrophe.” Naturally for Joe Biden, he has engaged with it more than his pro-Israel predecessor.
- Telling Israel That Only “Zero” Casualties Were Acceptable in a War Against Terrorists
As he flew to Israel in the wake of the devastating Hamas terror attacks, Biden’s aide John Kirby told reporters that “zero” civilian casualties were acceptable — an impossible goal in any war, let along one in which terrorists hide among civilians. He also promised Biden would ask “tough questions” of Netanyahu — despite promises just a few days before to back Israel fully, and despite the lofty purpose of the trip.
When a reporter asked Kirby if the Biden White House gave Israel the benefit of the doubt when it said it had nothing to do with the aforementioned explosion that killed civilians at a Gaza hospital, despite detailed evidence pointing to a rocket misfired by Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Kirby dodged the question.
- The Appointing of Jack Lew as U.N. Ambassador
Lew, the former Treasury Secretary, has defended Obama administration policies that were hostile toward Israel. He defended the JCPOA (duh) and he defended Obama’s “decision not to veto a UN Security Council resolution condemning Israeli settlements,” according to the Times of Israel.
Jack Lew, President Joe Biden’s nominee to be the U.S. ambassador to Israel, testifies during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee confirmation hearing on October 18, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
More recently, Lew “criticized then-President Donald Trump’s decision to move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem — a decision that led to the Abraham Accords,” my colleague Joel Pollak wrote last month.
Lew is not the man for the moment.
And neither is Joe Biden.
Breaking Biden is available now in hardcover, eBook, and audiobook read by the author.
Alex Marlow is the Editor-in-Chief of Breitbart News and a New York Times bestselling author. His new book, Breaking Biden: Exposing the Hidden Forces and Secret Money Machine Behind Joe Biden, His Family, and His Administration, is available now. You can follow Alex on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter at @AlexMarlow.
