Senior Biden administration aides will travel to Michigan on Thursday Hear directly from Muslim and Arab American community leaders Most importantly, about their main issues and concerns, including the Israel-Hamas war and civilian casualties in Gaza.
The White House teased an upcoming visit to Michigan last week when President Joe Biden traveled to Detroit for a labor-focused event with the United Auto Workers union.
A White House official told NBC News on Wednesday that administration officials visiting Michigan on Thursday included Steve Benjamin, the president’s senior adviser and director of the Office of Public Affairs; Tom Perez, senior counsel and director of the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs; Jon Finer, senior deputy national security adviser; Samantha Power, USAID Administrator; Jamie Citron, Senior Associate Director of the Office of Public Affairs; Dan Kosh, Director of the Office of Intergovernmental Relations; and Mazen Basraw, director of partnerships and global affairs at the National Security Council.
The meeting with Muslim and Arab American community leaders in Detroit is a White House-sponsored event. Biden campaign officials do not currently plan to attend.
A White House official said Biden has met with leaders of diverse views on the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas, and White House officials have been in regular contact with Muslim and Arab American leaders in Michigan and across the country.
Biden has been under pressure for a more aggressive response to the civilian death toll in Gaza, which has surpassed 27,000 this month. according to local health authorities. The United States has started sending humanitarian aid to Gaza in November and Biden also forced Congress to pass it bilateral immigration treaty It also included additional aid to the Palestinians in Gaza.
CNN was first Report a visit to Michigan on Thursday.
Thursday’s meeting of Biden administration officials with Muslim and Arab Americans is their latest episode to communicate to the public the president continues to face criticism for his response to the Israel-Hamas war.
The president too quietly held meetings with a handful of Muslim leaders In October, four sources familiar with the White House meeting said, amid pressure from the Arab American community that he was ignoring the death of Palestinian civilians and domestic threats from the Israel-Hamas war.