Tara Reade: Joe Biden is not a folksy ‘empathy president’. None of them are. Just ask the Palestinians

A few days before tensions erupted into major violence in Gaza, there was a rare New York Times article that bordered on a critique of President Joe Biden.

In the article, titled “Beneath Joe Biden’s Folksy Demeanor, a Short Fuse and an Obsession with Details,” two specific quotes stand out.

“What emerges is a portrait of a president with a short fuse, who is obsessed with getting the details right — sometimes to a fault…”

And:

“While aides say Mr. Biden is quick to demonstrate his displeasure, he is also prone to displays of unexpected warmth.”

Unfortunately, I am quite familiar with the “unexpected warmth” and “short fuse” part.

The New York Times spun the article to soften and normalize Biden’s behavior. The president’s fans still thought it was too critical.

Later in the week, amidst some of Biden's public gaffes about Israel and Palestine, the mainstream media was observed again acquiescing to Biden.

Krystal Ball from the Hill’s 'Rising' spoke for many of us when she noted on social media the mainstream media's worshipful behavior with disgust. 

Biden was hailed by liberals as the “empathy” president. He is not, I can assure you. There are many public examples of his lack of empathy. 

There was no empathy on display from him recently for the many Palestinian women and children killed by Israel. In fact, he publicly supported Israel and referred to Palestinians as only “civilians,” if at all. Biden’s administration refused to back a UN ceasefire five times and approved a $735-million arms deal with Israel.

It never occurred to me that bombing unarmed men, women and children could ever be justified. Yet, in media and on social media, the same Israeli argument appeared over and over, that Hamas was the problem and that it uses civilians as human shields. Suppose that is true, it still does not justify the killing of unarmed women and children or wiping out generations of families. It is a gruesome argument at best.

Biden, with his craven approach to foreign policy, is not any different from his predecessors. American imperialism was the norm for every president before him. It is a continuation and escalation for economic dominance and concentrated world power. Caitlin Johnstone aptly points out that systemic evil is American policy, not an attribute of any particular president – and Biden is no exception. 

I would just add ‘perpetrator of sexual assault’ to the personal part of that description.

The powerful politicians stick together with their shared crimes. Last week, Biden praised the former senator Chris Dodd for being “The finest man he had ever served with”.

Some of us remember the crude term thrown around – “the waitress sandwich,” referring to a sexual encounter between Dodd, the late Democratic Senator Ted Kennedy and Washington DC waitress Carla Gaviglio. That encounter was not consensual. 

According to Gaviglio, in 1985 the two senators assaulted her in a private room in the restaurant where she was working, Kennedy throwing her into Dodd’s lap and rubbing his genitals against her until another staffer came in. The claim, which came to light five years later, was corroborated by other members of restaurant staff.

There were no consequences or apology for Dodd and Kennedy’s behavior. Just like with New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who has been accused of sexual assault and sexual harassment by his own staff. He is still a governor. Just like with Biden.

The hypocrisy and corrupt collusion that allows illegal sexual misconduct is entrenched in the American system. The political leader’s sexual misconduct is almost symbolic of American foreign policy.

US leaders engage in aggressive predatory behavior, both in foreign policy and with their own citizens, with a particular toolbox. How and why this became the American path is steeped in history. The tool that is used to shape the hearts and minds of American citizens to accept leaders like Biden is fear. When fear is weaponized by the administration via the media, it causes that primal survival response in the citizens which results in conformity and handing control over to the state.

Whether it’s so-called “woke” or conservative ideas, fear is the underlying motivator. Fear is more than just a means to restrict the freedom of thought and action; it becomes the collective emotive response to every situation. If you are Gaviglio or me, it’s the fear of powerful men who can make your life hell. If you’re a designated ‘adversary’ nation, it’s the fear of American bombs and crippling economic sanctions.

The narrative becomes like a living thing that does not allow systemic change because that would threaten the system of control. It is from this creation of separation and isolation that views can be shaped by the empire for its citizens. While the media shaped our views of Donald Trump’s presidency as an unsuccessful horror, Biden continues the same foreign policies unscathed by media scrutiny. 

The “lesser of two evils” POTUS will now ask world leaders to bend a knee like the rest of us to his leadership and remain immune from any real scrutiny as American corporate media outlets march in lockstep with the Democratic party and continue to hide all the dirty linen.