As the war between Israel and Hamas rages into its third month, the rest of the world has formed opinions on the conflict and taken sides. A large portion of the world has taken the side of Hamas and the Palestinians, seemingly unaware or uncaring that Israel is fighting for its very existence. Fortunately, most Americans appear to be seeing things a bit differently. A new Wall Street Journal poll looks at Americans' feelings about the war in general, but when broken down by political affiliation, things get interesting and may even have some effect on the 2024 presidential election.

Israel has never been allowed to win a war. She has never been allowed to decisively defeat her enemies (who are our enemies, too). That’s why her enemies keep returning to murder Israelis. Maybe Israel should stop asking for permission.

— Mark Dubowitz (@mdubowitz) December 2, 2023

The WSJ poll surveyed 1,500 registered voters between November 29 and December 4. Of those surveyed, 55 percent said they believe that Israel is taking the appropriate military steps needed for self-defense and also to prevent another horrific attack like the one that the terror group Hamas carried out against Israel on October 7. The number of those polled who said that Israel's military response has been disproportionate was 25 percent. The poll showed that, as usual, Americans are an empathetic people. When asked who they sympathized with more, 42 percent said Israel, while 12 percent said the Palestinian people. 

Joe Biden's approval numbers on just about every issue Americans care about continue to take a nosedive, and it has plenty of Democrats nervous and sweaty. The most recent Real Clear Politics average poll shows Biden with a 54.9 percent disapproval rating on his handling of the war. Among Republicans, roughly two-thirds said they sympathized more with Israel, just two percent said they sided with Palestinians, and 17 percent said they sympathized with both. The results were markedly different among Democrats. Almost 25 percent of Democrats said they sympathized with Palestinians, 17 percent said they sympathized with Israel, and 48 percent they sympathized with both groups. 

Initially, after the attack, Joe Biden voiced nothing but support for Israel publicly, but as the war continues, at times, he seems to be saying something else. Overall, he has voiced the bipartisan support for Israel that has remained consistent from the United States for decades, but the split in support among Democrat voters could be a factor in Biden's reelection support. As his support among Muslim and Arab Americans has plunged, it was revealed that last month, Biden met with several Muslim and Arab American advocates, where he apologized for public comments questioning the Gaza death toll reported by Hamas.  

A new Wall Street Journal poll found younger Americans are much less supportive of Israel than older Americans.https://t.co/guDcvJaYit

— WPEC CBS12 News (@CBS12) November 1, 2023

Among Democrats, those under the age of 50 support Palestinians over Israelis by a margin of 35 percent to 13 percent. Democrats 50 years old and older side with Israel 22 percent to 12 percent. The explanation for this divide could be relatively simple. It is not a requirement in every state that the Holocaust be taught in public schools. Currently, just 26 states require teaching about the Holocaust, five have state statutes that are broad on requiring teaching about the Holocaust, four states have pending legislation, and ten have no requirements. Tony Fabrizio is the Republican pollster, along with Democrat Michael Bocian, who conducted the poll. He stated clearly the potential problem Democrats may have with a split in opinion on the conflict. He said,

“There is a schism between younger Democrats and older Democrats in where their sympathies lie. It has the potential to become a modern-day Vietnam for the Democrats.”

While Joe Biden apologizes to Muslim and Arab advocates, a massive wave of antisemitism is raging around the world, and closer to home, on America's college campuses. A recent survey by several Jewish groups showed that 73 percent of Jewish students said they had seen or experienced antisemitism on campus. Couple that with the fact that 64 percent of Jewish Americans say they are Democrats or left-leaning. Will Democrats pay attention to the mood of Americans regarding the Israel-Hamas conflict? Their 2024 fortunes may depend on it.

They have no respect for America.

Palestinian activists REMOVED the flag of America and replaced it with the Palestinian flag at the Golden Gate Bridge. pic.twitter.com/nUmwfUeui6

— Hananya Naftali (@HananyaNaftali) December 8, 2023