The ceasefire calls are coming from inside the White House
Biden faces blowback for Israel-Hamas war stance from his own administration


It's been nearly two weeks since Hamas militants murdered hundreds of Israelis across southern Israel, before retreating with an estimated two hundred hostages in tow. Israel, caught largely by surprise by the scale and ferocity of Hamas' attack, has in turn spent days bombarding the densely packed Gaza strip ahead of a planned ground invasion that will almost certainly eclipse the thousands already killed by Israel's expansive aerial assault.
Throughout this conflict, President Biden has emphatically backed Israel, vowing that "as long as the United States stands — and we will stand forever — we will not let you ever be alone." Although he has tempered that support with pledges of $100 million in "humanitarian assistance for the Palestinian people in Gaza and the West Bank," and calls for Israel not to be "consumed" by rage, Biden's public commitments to Israel, including a congressional request for $100 billion in emergency armament funds have rankled progressives calling for negotiations to end the violence rather than unilateral backing for one nation over another.
Urging her colleagues to "do everything we can to save lives," Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.) this week introduced a resolution demanding an "immediate de-escalation and ceasefire in Israel and Palestine," while Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) used similar language in a statement highlighting actions "urgently needed to save lives." While congressional disapproval of administration stances is nothing new, the Biden White House is facing congruent pushback from a less expected source, as well: Members of its own administration.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"There's basically a mutiny brewing"
Citing a "disagreement concerning our continued lethal assistance to Israel," longtime State Department official Josh Paul has been the highest profile administration member to come out against the Biden White House's Israel stance, writing in a resignation letter to his colleagues shared on his Linkedin page that "in our current course with regards to the continued – indeed, expanded and expedited – provision of lethal arms" to Israel he had "reached the end" of his belief that the benefits outweighed the harms of his work managing international arms sales from the U.S. While he'd felt he could affect dubious trades for the better in previous instances, "there’s no questioning on this one," Paul told The Washington Post. "There’s no space for substantive dissent within the system on this one."
Moreover, Paul said, he's not alone at the State Department. Speaking with HuffPost, Paul claimed a number of his former colleagues have come to him saying "we absolutely understand where you’re coming from, we feel similarly and understand."
"There’s basically a mutiny brewing within State at all levels," one Department official told the outlet, adding that Secretary Antony Blinken was largely ignoring the internal strife. To that end, department diplomats are reportedly drafting what's known as a "dissent cable" — a "document criticizing American policy that goes to the agency’s leaders through a protected internal channel" and which have been seen as "consequential statements of serious disagreement at key historical moments."
That sense of serious disagreement has permeated corners of the White House itself, where "some Muslim, Arab and Palestinian Americans who work in the Biden administration are feeling like their grief is not being taken into similar consideration" as their Jewish colleagues, Politico reported. "It’s personally frustrating to me to see Biden go to Israel and give weapons which are basically being used to slaughter Gazans," one Arab American administration official said, describing "a muzzle on any criticism of Israel." Another official pushed back on the assertion that the White House was unresponsive to its internal discord, telling Politico that "a lot of effort was going into making sure the administration’s messaging was inclusive of Jewish, Muslim, Arab and Palestinian Americans."
"The traditional unwavering support for Israel is untenable"
In part, the intra-administration strife may be as much a generational issue as it is an ideological one. "There’s a fairly strong sense among the mid-level officers that the traditional unwavering support for Israel is untenable," a former U.S. ambassador told Vanity Fair, contrasting the pushback to more entrenched attitudes at State. Instead, "this is based more on a generational change, and a more woke set of FSOs" who are "unhappy with current policy just as they’re unhappy with the still-unreformed personnel policies" at the Department.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Rafi Schwartz has worked as a politics writer at The Week since 2022, where he covers elections, Congress and the White House. He was previously a contributing writer with Mic focusing largely on politics, a senior writer with Splinter News, a staff writer for Fusion's news lab, and the managing editor of Heeb Magazine, a Jewish life and culture publication. Rafi's work has appeared in Rolling Stone, GOOD and The Forward, among others.
-
Today's political cartoons - May 3, 2025
Cartoons Saturday's cartoons - measles on the rise, sage advice, and more
-
5 shellshocked cartoons about Trump's first 100 days
Cartoons Artists take on a wild ride, F.D.R., and more
-
Kashmir: on the brink of a 'catastrophic' war
Talking Point Relations between India and Pakistan are 'cratering' in the aftermath of a shocking terror attack in the disputed border region
-
Trump moves to gut PBS and NPR in latest salvo against the media
IN THE SPOTLIGHT The president's executive order targeting two of the nation's largest public broadcasters comes as the White House seeks to radically reframe how Americans get their news
-
Kamala Harris steps back on center stage
IN THE SPOTLIGHT In her first major speech since Donald Trump took office, the former presidential candidate took solid aim at this administration as speculation grows about her future
-
Trump's crypto 'sea change' upends Washington's finances
In the Spotlight By embracing digital currency, the White House is clearing a path for a new era in dubious self-enrichment
-
Conspiracy theorists circle again following RFK file release
The Explainer Both RFK and his brother, President John F. Kennedy, have been the subjects of conspiracies
-
Trump tariffs place trucking industry in the crosshairs
IN THE SPOTLIGHT As the White House barrels ahead with its massive tariff project, American truckers are feeling the heat from a global trade war
-
Benjamin Netanyahu's Qatar problem
The Explainer Two of the prime minister's key advisers are accused of taking bribes from the Gulf state in exchange for favourable publicity
-
A running list of Trump's second-term national security controversies
In Depth Several scandals surrounding national security have rocked the Trump administration
-
Biden slams Trump's Social Security cuts
Speed Read In his first major public address since leaving office, Biden criticized the Trump administration's 'damage' and 'destruction'