After pro-Iranian groups were blamed for a drone strike in Jordan that left three U.S. soldiers dead, Democratic President Joe Biden is under pressure from his opponents to respond with harsh attacks on Iranian territory. A few months before the presidential election, Donald Trump, the big favorite in the Republican primaries and likely rival to Joe Biden in the November election, has already addressed the issue.
Published on: 01/29/2024 – 10:10 p.m. Modified on: 01/29/2024 – 10:11 p.m
4 mins
Is Joe Biden in a weak position compared to Iran? At least that's what opponents of the Democratic president, who is seeking a second term, made clear on Monday, January 29, by urging him to respond harshly to the deaths of three American soldiers in Jordan.
The Democrat “just has to take the hits,” analyzes Colin Clarke, research director at the Soufan Center, a New York-based think tank.
The White House attributed the drone strike, which targeted a base in northeastern Jordan, to pro-Iranian groups. Joe Biden has promised that America will “respond” and the response will be “consistent,” an executive branch spokesman, John Kirby, assured on Monday.
US President Joe Biden in Columbia, South Carolina, January 28, 2024. © Jacquelyn Martin, AP
However, he vehemently rejected the idea that the election campaign would dictate the behavior of the American president. Joe Biden “doesn’t look at the polls or the election calendar when he’s committed to protecting our troops.” […]. It would be insulting to suggest otherwise,” he said at a news conference.
Joe Biden has no choice but to respond, says Colin Clarke, under threat of being “overwhelmed in the middle of an election year by Republicans who might say that soldiers are dying under Biden and that there is no strong response.” , while Trump eliminated [le général Qassem] Soleimani, the former architect of Iran's military strategy, was the target of an American attack in January 2020.
Read alsoAmerican presidential election: Donald Trump versus Joe Biden, a win-win duel?
“Weak” and “cowardly,” according to the Republicans
The former Republican president, a heavy favorite in his party's primaries and a likely rival to Joe Biden in November's election, has already weighed in on the matter. He described his 81-year-old Democratic opponent as “weak” and assured that this attack would “never have happened” under his mandate.
The 77-year-old Republican is using this as an opportunity to bolster his campaign narrative: He presents himself as a providential strongman, capable of ensuring America's security through his sole authority without becoming involved in the conflicts that are ravaging the world shake.
Without a strong response against Iran, “Joe Biden would confirm that he is a coward and unworthy of being commander in chief of the armed forces,” raged Arkansas Republican Senator Tom Cotton.
But by resisting, Joe Biden risks alienating the progressive fringe of the Democratic Party, and “he can't afford to lose too many votes at a time when he's already struggling with young people and give those who criticize him a blank check.” “Israel” in its war against Hamas, emphasizes Colin Clarke.
Also read: United States changes tone toward Israel, a sign of “Biden administration’s frustration”
Criticism from the right of Joe Biden's perceived complacent Iran policy is not new, but the conflict in the Gaza Strip, sparked by the attack by the Tehran-backed Palestinian group, has reignited it.
American defeat in Afghanistan
“The strategy of deterrence [de l’administration Biden] Failed miserably. According to an influential Republican senator, Lindsay Graham, there have been more than 100 attacks on American troops in the region since October 7th. So far, none of these attacks have caused any casualties.
However, this is not the first time that Joe Biden's mandate has been shaken by the deaths of American soldiers. On August 26, 2021, amid the chaotic troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, 173 people, including 13 American soldiers, were killed in an attack near Kabul airport.
At that moment, Joe Biden's popularity curves reversed for the first time, with negative opinions taking precedence over positive opinions. At that time, the discontent fueled by very high inflation was confirmed, and today the president shows weak self-confidence.
Also read: The United States' Defeat in Afghanistan: A Catastrophe Foretold
The Democrat justified the withdrawal from Afghanistan with the desire to no longer put the lives of American soldiers at risk.
This was one of the big promises of his previous presidential campaign: In a foreign policy speech in July 2019, candidate Joe Biden promised that if elected he would end “endless wars.” [de l’Amérique] in Afghanistan and the Middle East.
With AFP