"We have to think about what we’re doing, and what we have to do is try to stop the suffering in Gaza … but for them to call for a ceasefire is Mr. Putin’s message,” she said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union,” referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin. “Make no mistake, this is directly connected to what he would like to see.”
“I think … some of these protesters are spontaneous and organic and sincere,” Pelosi said. “Some, I think, are connected to Russia. And I say that having looked at this for a long time now, as you know.”
She could be right. Putin and the Russian agenda is to sow the seeds of chaos in the west. Anything that he can use to hammer Biden and drum up discontent among Americans is a win. It would be absurd to think they aren’t pushing protests and muddying the waters.
That doesn’t make a genocide not a genocide. That doesn’t mean Biden’s critics are wrong about his unwaivering support of the current Israeli government. There are probably a bunch of Nazis in the protest crowd, but that doesn’t invalidate the underlying problem.
To be sure, we should root out anti-semitism and we should reject instigators who’s only goal is discord. And a great way to do that would be for Biden to get on the right side of the issues. Call for a cease fire without calling for the elimination of Israel. Stop supporting the IDF and call for investigations into war crimes and murders. Support humanitarian aid to Gaza, and continue to fight Hamas and other terrorist groups. Broker peace, and foster empathy. Be the leader the world doesn’t have, and counter Putin’s efforts with more than just whining.
But Biden would have to be a better leader, a better president, and a better person to accomplish something like that.
None of this is a reason to vote for Trump. Biden is an ineffectual centrist, and Trump is an unmitigated piece of shit. There’s no question who we should vote for.
But we should keep pushing Biden, and keep demanding more of our government. And Pelosi should recognize that if Putin has agents stirring up trouble, she’s in a unique position to do something about that. Telling the protesters their arguments are invalid because the enemy wants us to argue is not convincing.
