Detroit Evening Report: Abandon Biden campaign remains skeptical of Harris

Vice President Kamala Harris could be inheriting some of the opposition President Joe Biden faced on the campaign trail, now that Biden has dropped out of the 2024 presidential race.

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One source of opposition came from the “Abandon Biden” movement, angry over the administration’s stance on Israel’s war in Gaza.

Gaza’s Health Ministry says the death toll from Israel’s war is approaching 40,000. That number does not distinguish between combatants and civilians. Israel’s months-long military campaign began after a Hamas-led attack in October 2023 that Israel said killed about 1,200 people. The International Criminal Court has found it’s “plausible” that Israel’s actions in Gaza amount to genocide.

Dearborn-based community organizer Samra’a Luqman said she’s looking for a candidate willing to endorse a significant shift in policy toward Israel.

“I’m looking for anybody that will come out and say what has happened was wrong and we need to change course. But at this time, we’re stuck between a rock and a hard place with everybody continuing the same rhetoric,” Luqman said.

Once Biden announced his departure from the campaign, the Abandon Biden campaign sent out a press release outlining what it saw as the failings of the administration overall.

But it did not write off Harris entirely as a candidate.

“With the announcement that Kamala Harris has received Joe Biden’s endorsement to be the Democratic nominee, we invite her to meet with the Abandon Biden campaign. Our demands remain unchanged: call for and pressure an unconditional ceasefire in Gaza. The new candidate must address these critical issues and break from the destructive legacy of the current administration,” the statement said.

The Harris campaign did not immediately provide a comment in response to the criticisms.

Reporting by Colin Jackson, Michigan Public Radio Network.

Other headlines for Tuesday, July 23, 2024:

• The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) is partnering with five universities across the state to launch a new initiative for social workers. 
• About half of Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan’s administration live outside of Detroit, according to information obtained by the Detroit Free Press.
• The Detroit City Planning Commission approved the $65 million expansion of the Motown Museum last week.  

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