Harris accuses Biden of a 'perceived blank check' to Netanyahu in Hamas war, new memoir reveals

Former Vice President Kamala Harris asserts in her new memoir that President Joe Biden's handling of the Hamas war in Gaza gave the impression of a "perceived blank check" to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Axios reported. In "107 Days," released Tuesday, Harris argues that Biden's public posture allowed Netanyahu to frame the conflict in a way that undercut humanitarian concerns for Gazan civilians and damaged her bid for the White House.

She writes that Biden could say "I am a Zionist," but his remarks about innocent Palestinians were "inadequate and forced," she writes. Harris says she pleaded with him to extend the same empathy shown to Ukrainians to Gazan civilians; Axios reported.

Harris quotes Netanyahu as having a clear political preference in Washington, noting that the Israeli leader "wanted [Donald] Trump in the seat opposite him. Not Joe, not me," according to Axios. She adds that Netanyahu's response to the Oct. 7 atrocities was ferocious, and that the scale of civilian casualties, along with his prioritization of hostages, weakened Israel's moral position internationally and provoked dissent within Israel itself.

"I believe Israel was right to respond to the atrocities of October 7," Harris writes, but she warns that the ferocity of Netanyahu's actions and the accompanying humanitarian toll have complicated U.S. standing and fed challenges to public support across the region. The book frames these dynamics as central to the Democratic Party's ongoing internal debate over how aggressively to defend Israel while pressing for humanitarian safeguards and a two-state framework.

A December 2023 Politico article quoted Harris's former press secretary Kirsten Allen saying there is no daylight between the president and the vice president, nor has there been, and reiterated the White House line that Israel has a right and responsibility to defend itself; humanitarian aid must flow into Gaza; innocent civilians must be protected; and the United States remains committed to a two-state solution.

The book by Harris, who ran in the 2024 Democratic presidential primary, notes that former President Donald Trump’s victory in that cycle kept the focus on who would shape U.S. policy toward Israel and Gaza at a time of high international scrutiny. Harris writes that Netanyahu’s preferred outcome would have been a Biden administration, a line she attributes to behind-the-scenes calculations rather than public commentary, according to Axios.

The account appears in the same period that Harris has faced questions about how her campaign’s stance on foreign policy and humanitarian concerns aligned with the broader Democratic platform. Harris’s portrayal of the Gaza crisis and the U.S. response is part of a larger conversation within the party about balancing security interests with civilian protection and a commitment to a two-state solution.

The reporting on Harris’s book comes as a renewed wave of debate over U.S. policy toward Israel and Gaza continues to shape political discourse ahead of elections. While Axios and Politico provided the primary context for the quotes and framing, Fox News also highlighted the tension between the administration’s public messaging and the concerns raised by Harris in her memoir. The narrative underscores enduring questions about how Democratic leaders navigate support for Israel amid humanitarian concerns and the pressures of a polarized political environment.