Uncommitted voters gather for 'Abandon Biden' viewing of State of the Union in Dearborn
DEARBORN, Mich. (FOX 2) - Typically, a political watch party is thrown in support of a political candidate. However, that was not the case at the Abandon Biden campaign’s State of the Union watch party.
As President Joe Biden delivered a pivotal State of the Union Address Thursday night, a viewing and dialogue session was hosted at Adonis Restaurant in Dearborn – the city with the largest Arab-American population in the U.S.
"The speech tonight is just an election gimmick," said Farah Khan, an Abandon Biden spokesperson.
Organizers of the bipartisan event encouraged anyone who disagrees with Biden's policies to attend.
"Abandon Biden is a coalition committed to fostering civic discourse and engagement across the political spectrum," according to the national movement, which began after Biden sent aid to Israel instead of calling for an immediate cease-fire in the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.
The watch party is only one of several anti-Biden efforts planned in metro-Detroit this election season, according to Abandon Biden organizers.
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"You can see all these footages of starving children, dying children. It just breaks my heart as a mother," Khan said Thursday. "I mean really?! You kill all my children and then you ask me that I will vote for you? Absolutely not."
The viewing also perpetuates the extensive 'uncommitted' movement from the Michigan primary, which garnered over 100,000 votes on Feb. 27. Notably, the margins by which Michiganders have elected Presidents have been even less than that.
"That is just giving Mr. president a little bit of taste of what he has coming in November. So I think we will be working very hard, mobilizing the people, and making sure that they vote not for Biden," Khan said.
Israel’s air, sea and ground campaign in Gaza has killed tens of thousands of people, obliterated large swaths of the urban landscape and displaced 80% of the battered enclave’s population.
In Washington, D.C., a large group of pro-Palestinian protesters gathered near the White House ahead of President Biden's State of the Union speech.
"It’s not a concession. It’s a necessity. It’s human life, and cease fire, and the stopping of genocide, and supplying the humanitarian aid that is terribly needed," Khan said. "This is a must. It should happen regardless."
The campaign stressed that their work is in no way an endorsement for former President Donald Trump.
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Israel has essentially endorsed a framework of a proposed Gaza cease-fire and hostage release deal, a senior U.S. official said Saturday.