This was an endeavor that had the feeling of “boondoggle” from its inception, and yet it managed to fall short of even that projection. When it was announced that Joe Biden wanted to construct a floating pier in order to deliver relief aid into a war-torn Gaza region, there was praise in media circles, even as most pragmatic thinkers looked on with skepticism. That latter group has been shown to be the wiser ones on this matter.
The announcement has come down that after being reconstituted, the problematic pier will be decommissioned entirely. The intent is to have it remain operational for a few more days in order to expel remaining supplies that have stacked up in recent weeks, and then the pier will be broken down and permanently removed. This will bring an end to a project serving as a stark metaphor for the Biden regime as it is one that has never been working at an optimal level, the intent of which has also been fraught with problems, and has ended up as being an expensive failure.
Despite these glaring realities, the press – currently suffering a case of severe credibility damage due to Biden fealty – continues to shield the president by delivering veiled coverage of this fiasco. As the Associated Press covers this announced end of the project, the outlet soft-pedals the results. It described the announced removal as “the final blow to a project long plagued by bad weather, security uncertainties and difficulties getting food into the hands of starving Palestinians.”
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This follows a pattern in the press where reports were compelled to be filed on the calamities but described in euphemistic terms. At CNN, they described the effort to bring in the aid “encountering significant obstacles on distribution routes.” What has been seen from the news centers is an unwillingness to be critical of Biden while also trying to elide the reality that Hamas has been impeding the efforts to assist their own Palestinian citizens.
From the start, the proposed pier was seen as a confounding enterprise. It had been conceived as a solution to this portion of Gaza lacking a deep water harbor, so a floating causeway would extend to offshore areas where relief ships could offload the supplies, which would be trucked in and reach suffering residents. To say this was a FUBAR execution is more than fair.
Not only was this regarded as an engineering issue, there were also failures with the logistics. Some supply craft still managed to run aground, and at one point, four vessels became unmoored and beached nearby. Weather caused damage, and pieces of the pier broke off and washed ashore. Getting into the region was impacted by roadway issues and fuel shortages. An overall lack of cogent planning with maneuvers in the area led to supplies being stacked up on the beach. All of which occurred while Hamas was also adding to the problems.
A U.S. army landing craft along with a piece of the floating Gaza pier are currently stuck on an Israeli beach. pic.twitter.com/ytUnuFLFgw
— Trey Yingst (@TreyYingst) May 25, 2024
During construction, the terror group launched mortars into the area. In their report, the AP wanted to imply that Israeli activity had hampered the delivery of aid: “The United Nations suspended deliveries from the pier on June 9, a day after the Israeli military used the area around it for airlifts after a hostage rescue that killed more than 270 Palestinians.” Upon completion of the pier, the delivery of the supplies was met with frequent raids by Hamas, and it has been noted that a majority of the relief supplies have been stolen by the terror group. That this detail needed to be downplayed by the AP explains so much.
Overall, the pier cost — at minimum — $350 million, and likely higher, with the breakdowns, reconstruction, and repairs. After the current third effort at delivery, it will be broken down permanently, having been operational for less than one month total of non-concurrent service days.
Costly, flawed, ineffective, damaged, and leading to international mockery. The Gaza relief pier serves as the perfect symbol of the Biden administration.
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