CHELSEA — Delegates to the Democratic National Convention voted on the party’s 2024 platform on Monday, agreeing on a vision for the next four years that was written before President Joe Biden dropped out of the race and supported Vice President Kamala Harris.
The 92-page document, passed in a largely ceremonial majority vote, repeatedly highlights Biden’s positions and achievements, which may differ slightly from Harris’.
The document was approved by the program committee on July 16, less than a week after Biden dropped out of the race and endorsed Harris. The program mentions Biden’s “second term” 20 times, underscoring the recent restructuring of the campaign.
“It is a powerful statement about the historic work that President Biden and Vice President Harris have done hand in hand and offers a vision for a progressive agenda that we can build on as a nation and as a party over the next four years,” the Democratic National Committee said in a press release.
Notably, the program makes no mention of an arms embargo against Israel, a demand made by unaffiliated delegates and thousands of protesters outside the security zone near the arena where delegates and officials are gathering.
The protests come against the backdrop of developments in negotiations on a ceasefire in the Gaza war. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Monday that Israel had accepted the US ceasefire proposal. The next step is acceptance by Hamas. Further negotiations are expected to take place later this week.
The document stresses that “a strong, secure, and democratic Israel is critical to the interests of the United States,” but also reaffirms Israel’s security and right to self-defense. The program also mentions Biden’s support for an aid package for Israel and Ukraine passed by Congress earlier this year that included $17 billion in security assistance to the Jewish state.
A two-state solution after the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip is also being discussed “in a way that prevents the rearmament of Hamas”.
“It would create the conditions for a better future for the Palestinian people, a future of self-determination, dignity, security and freedom, and ultimately a state of their own – a contrast to (former President Donald) Trump, who refuses to support the political aspirations of the Palestinian people.”
“There are language in the platform that we find helpful and language that we find unhelpful,” said Abbas Alawieh, an unaffiliated DNC delegate from Michigan, referring to efforts by progressive activists to add a clause to the party platform opposing U.S. aid to Israel.
“What’s more important to us is where Vice President Harris takes us now that she’s the nominee,” Alawieh said. “This platform was worked on before the vice president was the nominee. We need to hear from her how she plans to differentiate her policies from the disastrous policies of the last 10 months and, importantly, from … Trump’s very destructive plans.”
Harris struck a more compassionate tone, acknowledging the suffering of both the Israeli and Palestinian people during a one-on-one meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last month and pledging “not to look away from these tragedies.”
Even some delegates supporting the Harris-Walz ticket had hoped there would be some changes in the platform now that Biden is no longer at the top of the list.
“I think it’s important to emphasize that we want an arms embargo, and that’s the best political move for Harris’ campaign,” said Liano Sharon, a delegate from Lansing, Michigan. “There’s a ton of data that shows that people in the country want an arms embargo.”
That platform specifically mentions building on the Abraham Accords, a series of normalization deals between Israel and Arab countries brokered by the Trump administration. The document now states that Biden wants to build on that by forging a normalization deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia.
Many Democratic delegates are happy with the wording, even though Biden is no longer at the top of the ballot list.
“Joe Biden has made it clear from day one that he is not a Jew, he is a Zionist,” said Daniel Hernandez, a delegate from Arizona. “I think we have seen an unprecedented level of support for the State of Israel and its security.”
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“I think that’s the message to take away from this: that the Democratic Party and Joe Biden and the Biden-Harris administration and now the future Harris-Waltz administration will hopefully continue to be a strong partner for our only ally in the Middle East,” Hernandez said.
Marisa Schultz contributed to this report.
