Almost half of US Democrats disapprove of Biden’s response to Gaza war

Almost half of all Democrats — 46 percent — disapprove of Biden’s handling of the war, according to a Thursday poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs. Fifty percent said they approve.

Asked about his handling of the general Israel-Palestinian conflict, Democrats are less supportive of Biden’s response than they were in a similar poll conducted in August — when 57 percent of Democrats approved of the response and 40 percent disapproved.

Most Democrats who approve of Biden’s handling of the conflict, nearly 70 percent, said the US is providing the right amount of support for Israel. Most Democrats who disapprove, about 65 percent, said the United States is too supportive of Israel.

About 76 percent of Democrats who approve of Biden’s handling of the war said Hamas has a lot of responsibility for the war, while 32 percent said the same about the Israeli government.

Democrats who disapprove of Biden’s handling of the war, however, are just as likely to put responsibility on the Israeli government as they are on Hamas: 56 percent said the Israeli government, and 55 percent said Hamas.

The poll, conducted Nov. 2-6, included interviews with 1,239 adults and an overall margin of error of 3.9 percentage points.