Left out: Four ways Biden is angering the far-left of his party

While President Joe Biden is the focus of criticism from Republicans who claim he is too liberal, he has also received the ire of many within the far-left of his own party.

Particularly over the past year, Biden’s stance on several key issues has angered the progressive wing of the Democratic Party.

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Here are four ways Biden has angered the far-left of the Democratic Party.

Support for Israel

Israel has always been an issue that divides the centrist and progressive wings of the Democratic Party, so party leadership was content to avoid making it a central sticking point. That all changed on Oct. 7, when a deadly surprise attack from Hamas against Israel began the deadliest round of fighting between Palestine and Israel since the latter’s War of Independence in 1948.

Democratic Party leadership remains strongly pro-Israel, and Biden has gone to significant lengths to show his support for the Jewish nation. This support has caused a political firestorm within the party, as the progressive wing has been increasingly bold in pushing back against this support.

Mainly led by the progressive House group, the “Squad,” these Democrats have gone as far as to denounce Biden directly, with some accusing him of facilitating a genocide.

“Israel just bombed the Baptist Hospital killing 500 Palestinians (doctors, children, patients) just like that,” Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Oct. 17. “[President Biden] this is what happens when you refuse to facilitate a ceasefire & help de-escalate. Your war and destruction only approach has opened my eyes and many Palestinian Americans and Muslims Americans like me. We will remember where you stood.”

Despite intelligence suggesting that Israel was not behind the blast, Tlaib later tripled down on her comments. She announced on Sunday that she would withhold her full support for Biden in 2024 over the issue of Israel.

Immigration

Progressive Democrats have criticized Biden’s immigration policy since he took office but have ramped up the criticism in recent weeks as the president looks to compromise with Republicans to ensure aid to Ukraine.

On Wednesday, a group of progressive House and Senate Democrats warned Biden that he would be selling out progressives if he compromised with Republicans on the issue

“They’re going to be in for a rude awakening if they think that we’re just going to go with what the administration negotiates,” Rep. Gab Vasquez (D-NM) warned, according to Politico.

The chairwoman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, Jayapal, even warned of the party falling apart if Biden followed the changes.

“The base of the Democratic Party — young people, folks of color, immigrants — that was the coalition that allowed Joe Biden to get elected…” she said, per Punchbowl News. “This coalition is splitting apart. We need the president and his campaign to pay attention to what is happening on the ground.”

Oil drilling

In March, the Biden administration approved an extensive oil drilling project in Alaska called the Willow Project, drawing the ire of environmental groups and progressives.

“The Biden administration has committed to fighting climate change and advancing environmental justice—today’s decision to approve the Willow project fails to live up to those promises,” Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ), Jared Huffman (D-CA), and Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) said in a joint statement at the time.

However, the Biden administration announced in September that it would prohibit oil and gas drilling on millions of acres in Alaska’s North Slope and revoke seven Trump-era oil and gas leases in the area, despite continuing approval for the Willow Project.

GOP Crime Bill

After previously indicating that he would support left-wing crime reforms in Washington D.C., Biden changed course in March, announcing that he would sign a bill passed by Congress that would overturn the bill.

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“I support D.C. Statehood and home-rule — but I don’t support some of the changes D.C. Council put forward over the Mayor’s objections — such as lowering penalties for carjackings,” Biden tweeted. “If the Senate votes to overturn what D.C. Council did — I’ll sign it.”

The move was met with shock and outrage from progressive Democrats in Congress and Washington, D.C., who saw it as a betrayal.