Democrats’ Unity Convention Has One Giant Exception: The War in Gaza

Democrats' Unity Convention Has One Giant Exception: The War in Gaza

Even as feel-good displays of joy and confidence are set to dominate the Democratic National Convention this week in Chicago, one painful issue is bitterly dividing the Democratic establishment from its left flank: the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.

The specter of convention-upending protests that hovered over a gathering hosted for President Joe Biden has receded somewhat with the rise of a new candidate in Kamala Harris, who is seen as more sympathetic to Palestinian rights activists. But tens of thousands of protesters are still expected to convene just outside the event's security perimeter, and the potential for high-profile disruptions remains real.

>Emphasizing the unity theme, convention planners have tried to mollify both Muslim and Jewish Americans.

Speaking slots have been allotted to the families of American hostages held by Hamas in Gaza. One of the most prominent Muslims in national politics, Keith Ellison, the progressive attorney general of Minnesota, will be given time onstage. Doug Emhoff, the husband of Harris, is expected to speak proudly of his Judaism. And the Democratic platform highlights America's commitment to Israeli security.

At the same time, Harris' campaign manager, Julie Chavez-Rodriguez, held a series of meetings last week to hear the concerns of Arab Americans and some delegates representing Democratic primary voters who cast "uncommitted" ballots in the Democratic primary to protest Biden's Israel policy

Despite such efforts, the convention will be shadowed by large protests against the Biden-Harris administration's approach to a war that Gaza health authorities say has killed more than 40,000 Palestinians since the Hamas attack on Oct. 7 that left 1,200 people dead in Israel.

The key question for Democrats this week is whether the demonstrators represent a meaningful group of voters who could swing the election in November, or if they are outliers on the left who should be resisted in an appeal to the center.

Either way, the subject of the war is bound to be a central issue throughout the convention, said Gov. Phil Murphy of New Jersey.

"It is a reality, and it cannot be ignored," he said. "There's too much tragedy, there's too much loss of innocent life, and by the way, there's still too much — at a very high level — of geopolitical risk, and that is not going away, unfortunately, anytime soon."