Under pressure from the left and the right, President Joe Biden tried to strike a middle ground on Thursday, saying he respects college students' right to peacefully protest — and rejects deploying the National Guard against them — but arguing there is "not a right to cause chaos."
Biden's remarks came after dramatic scenes on campuses across the country, where thousands of students have been protesting the war in Gaza and their school's investments in Israel. At Columbia University, school administrators called in police this week after some students broke in and occupied a building on campus, while at UCLA police watched as a pro-Israel mob attacked a pro-Palestine encampment amid charges that some protesters have gone beyond criticism of Israel and engaged in antisemitism.
Speaking from the White House, Biden tried to balance protesters' "right to free speech" with the "rule of law."
"We are not an authoritarian nation where we silence people or squash dissent. The American people are heard. In fact, peaceful protest is in the best tradition of how Americans respond to consequential issues," Biden said. "But neither are we a lawless country. We are a civil society and order must be prevail."
The president went on to distinguish between what he cast as legitimate protests and those that cross the line.
"Vandalism, trespassing, breaking windows, shutting down campuses, forcing the cancellation of classes and graduation -- none of this is a peaceful protest," Biden said. "Dissent is essential to democracy, but dissent must never lead to disorder or denying the rights of others so students can finish the semester and their college education.
But even as Biden appeared to offer support for police breaking down encampments, he chastised those on the right calling for further escalation. A number of Republican lawmakers have urged the president to deploy troops against the protesters.
"This isn't a moment for politics," Biden said, telling reporters "no," he would not call up the National Guard.
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