As we previously reported, Joe Biden has suddenly come up with an Islamophobia initiative. 

We can’t stand by while hate against Muslims, and those wrongfully perceived to be Muslim, including Arabs and Sikhs, is given oxygen.

That’s why we're developing a National Strategy to Counter Islamophobia and Related Forms of Hate.

Silence is complicity. We won't be silent. https://t.co/NOSIxnNwlI

— President Biden (@POTUS) November 2, 2023

So why is Joe Biden suddenly coming out with an Islamophobia initiative as antisemitism is running crazy on college campuses and elsewhere? Most of the religious-based hate crime is directed at Jewish people. Why isn't the focus on the real problem? 

It could be because Joe Biden is wrong about almost everything. 

But unfortunately, it appears a lot more shameless and craven than that. It appears it's about the votes. Democrats have been warning him that he's in trouble in the critical state of Michigan.

Democrats in Michigan have warned the White House that President Joe Biden’s handling of the Israel-Hamas conflict could cost him enough support within the Arab American community to sway the outcome of the 2024 election in a state he almost certainly can’t afford to lose in his bid for reelection.

The situation has prompted the White House to discuss ways to alleviate tensions with some of the state’s prominent Democrats, including several who have been vocal critics of the president about the war. 

“The message has been relayed. We’ve had calls with the White House. We’ve had calls with DNC officials,” said Abraham Aiyash, the third-ranking Democrat in the state House of Representatives, referring to the Democratic National Committee. “We’ve been clear in saying the humanity should matter, but if that is not a calculation that you’re going to make in this moment, recognize that there will be electoral reverberations to this.”

That last part means they're telling him if he doesn't go along with them, they won't be going along with him. 

We've reported on other Democrats trying to pressure him on the issue as well.

Moreover, Biden's poll numbers with Muslims have also taken a huge hit since his response to the Israel-Hamas war. 

Back in the U.S., Palestinian and Arab Americans have expressed outrage over Biden’s response to Israel’s bombardment of Gaza, which has killed more than 8,000 people, more than a quarter of them children. The first national poll of Arab Americans since the war in Gaza began shows how deep that sense of betrayal goes, with only 17% of Arab American voters saying they will vote for Biden in 2024—a staggering drop from 59% in 2020. 

“This is the most dramatic shift over the shortest period of time that I’ve ever seen,” James Zogby, the founder and president of the Arab American Institute, which released the poll on Tuesday, tells TIME. 

That's an incredible plunge. No wonder Biden is coming out with an initiative. 

He can't afford to lose any votes or voting blocs; polls already have him in trouble before this. 

That's why you may see him try to play both ends against the middle and say things like he's pushing for a "humanitarian pause" or a ceasefire, as he did Wednesday night. The White House then had to walk that back.

And he's afraid this is going to cost him the election. 

It just might.