He supports Israel and is committed to its security .. Will Biden fulfill his promises to Arab Americans if he wins the presidency?

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden revealed a plan for partnership with the Arab community in the United States, which included steps and policies that the former vice president pledged to take if he wins the presidency.

Biden expressed his belief that "the contributions of Arab Americans are necessary to support the fabric of the American nation, and as a president he will fight fanaticism at home and around the world, and stand with the millions of Arab Americans who help strengthen America every day."

Biden's plan reflects a general trend by the Democratic Party to approach racial, ethnic and religious minorities, whom the Republican Party does not welcome, especially under the leadership of President Donald Trump.

Details of the

plan Biden's plan includes promises of decisions the former vice president pledged to take if he wins the presidency, and among its most prominent features:

- Combating anti-Arab and Muslim rhetoric, in addition to replacing the current form of the anti-terror program, to include a focus on extreme right-wing groups such as those that believe in the supremacy of the white race.

- Revoke the decision issued by Trump at the beginning of his ruling banning entry to citizens of a number of Arab and Muslim majority countries.

The Saudi government did not grant a blank check, which prompted them to adopt a catastrophic set of policies, including the ongoing war in Yemen, the killing of Jamal Khashoggi, and the crackdown on opposition at home, including targeting activists.

Kamala Harris said that the Biden-Harris administration will ensure that Israel maintains its qualitative military edge (Reuters)

Israel's security

On the other hand, the political program of the Democratic Party did not include any reversal of the decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and to transfer the US embassy to it.

The Democrats pledged to restore diplomatic relations between the United States and the Palestinians, provided that aid would also be returned to the Palestinian people in the West Bank and Gaza in accordance with US law, as indicated by the program.

At the same time, the program pledged to oppose any effort to delegitimize Israel, while guaranteeing citizens' constitutional right to freedom of expression.

Kamala Harris, the Democratic vice presidential candidate, confirmed at a meeting of Jewish financiers for Biden's campaign that the Biden administration would not impose conditions on US aid to Israel despite pressure from the Democratic Party’s progressive movement to set conditions on granting $ 3.8 billion in military aid so that it would not be included. Israel is parts of the West Bank, as its Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged.

"Biden made it clear that he would not link military aid to any political decisions taken by Israel ... The Biden-Harris administration will maintain our unbreakable commitment to Israel's security, and to ensure that Israel maintains its qualitative military edge," Harris said.

Maya Berry, executive director of the Arab American Institute, delivers a message of unity at the #MarchOnWashington, calls for systemic change: "The system is not broken, it is working as it was designed, and we must change it."

https://t.co/0PZ8gdz5mx pic.twitter.com/tiyDqT6Dau

- ABC News (@ABC) August 28, 2020

The Importance of Arab Voices

, Maya Perry, Executive Director of the Arab American Institute, said that the number of Arabs with US citizenship is 3.7 million.

The Arab community is spread in various American states, although it is concentrated in a number of states, including democratic states such as New York and California, and republican states such as Texas.

The most important states in terms of the spread of the Arab electoral vote in them are the swing states of Michigan and Ohio.

Trump won both terms in 2016, beating his rival Hillary Clinton in Michigan by a narrow margin of 0.02%, or less than 11,000 votes.

According to a study by the Arab American Institute, 52% of Arab voters voted for the Democratic Party, 22% voted for Republicans, and 26% remained among independents who do not vote for either of the two major parties and their candidates.

Arab communities do not take a unified position on the presidential elections, as there is a group whose vote depends on the relationship of that administration with the mother country, as is the case among the Egyptian Americans who support the regime of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, as they see Trump as a strong supporter of the ruling regime in Egypt.

There is also a group of religious Arabs (Christians and Muslims) who do not vote for a candidate who supports gay rights or promotes abortion.

As for the last category, they vote based on the candidate’s record on the Palestinian cause.

#ArabAmericans have been working to build political power as an organized constituency for decades.

With each year, each campaign, each election, progress is made.

This is an important development for the Arab American community.

https://t.co/cjoSwEwgUH

- Arab American Institute ☎️ 833-3DDOUNI (@AAIUSA) August 29, 2020

Election promises or realistic action plans?

Jim Zogby, founding director of the Arab American Institute, sees Biden's action plan as a historic development.

Zogby tweeted celebrating the plan, "You refuse to exclude us or silence us, close gaps in racial profiling, reject Trump's method of combating violent extremism, protect our constitutional right to express opinion and defend the Palestinians, and a strong call for freedom and democracy for Palestinians."

He added, "Biden will protect the constitutional right of our citizens to freedom of expression ... He also does not support efforts to criminalize freedom of expression in exposing what Israel is doing. That is why he spoke against Israel’s decision to prevent entry to American lawmakers who prefer boycotting Israel."

"Arab Americans have been playing an organized political role for decades," Maya Perry, director of the Arab American Institute, said in a tweet. "With every election, every campaign, every election progresses. This is an important development for the Arab American community."

Over the weekend, @joebiden released a detailed plan for the Arab-American community.

We're excited to see him focus on issues important to our community: pic.twitter.com/cYzS7wmVWQ

- Arab Americans for Biden (@ AA4Biden) August 31, 2020

A

and weeks ago, Biden set a historical precedent as the first presidential candidate in American history to speak to a gathering of American Muslims before the presidential elections, no presidential candidate - whether from the Republican or Democratic party - had ever spoken with them at this advanced time in the campaign.

Biden considered that Muslims have suffered from abuse and racism despite their contributions to American society, and added that he will cancel the travel ban imposed by the Trump administration on Muslims since the first day of his administration, saying, "If I have the honor to be president, I will end the ban imposed on Muslims on the first day." .

This came by hosting Biden by the "IMAGE" organization, which is active in the field of the political rights of Muslims in the United States, through a virtual program on the Internet entitled "The Summit of One Million Muslim Voices", in which more than 3 thousand American Muslims participated.

For his part, the head of the Imag Foundation, Wael Al-Zayat, said in an interview with Al-Jazeera Net that his organization's efforts "focus on registering more Muslim voters in swing states such as Michigan and Florida, as well as working closely with Biden's drive to represent Muslims within his administration if he comes to power." ".