Both conservative grader Jed Babbin and Democratic pollster John Zogby graded the week an F, and would have been harsher if there had been a way to do it.

Zogby said that Biden’s weakness in helping to settle the Middle East crisis has resulted in pushing the United States into the war as it has decided to send troops and defensive equipment to Israel. He also said that the administration has helped to deepen the humanitarian disaster in the region.

Babbin took aim at Harris and her sputtering presidential campaign. He gave special attention to the administration’s political decision to work with Mexico to close the border until Election Day, and then open the gates wide open.

John Zogby

Grade: F

If anyone is paying close attention, the U.S. is now knee-deep into a regional war in the Middle East.

The Biden administration’s inability (or lack of desire) to rein in the excesses of the Netanyahu government and the Israel Defense Forces has now led to a massive humanitarian crisis in Gaza, violence and instability in the West Bank, destruction of whole villages and murders of Lebanese whose only crime is to have been living in southern Lebanon — a place that Israel plans to create both a buffer zone and expand settlements.

It also means war with the Yemeni Houthis and a planned attack on Iran.

Israel’s killing of the Hamas leader is spun as an act of military genius and planning but is really only the result of a scattershot attack, and the Biden administration now says peace is at hand. But it is not. The U.S. and Israel will now try to bully their way into redrawing a new map of the region and imposing friendly governance on areas that will be designed to ensure Israel’s security.

That sounds to me like other efforts at “nation-building,” like Versailles, Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Somalia. Those did not work out, and neither will this. Love and respect do not come from the point of a gun, and thousands of Palestinians, Lebanese, and others will not forget. Whether anyone agrees with this analysis or not, this is just not going to work. And neither Vice President Kamala Harris nor former President Donald Trump offer anything better.

Jed Babbin

Grade: F

It was an awfully busy week for Vice President Kamala Harris and her minions (including President Joe Biden). She was found to have plagiarized much of her book, to have not prosecuted any of the cases she claims to have done, she refused to fully answer questions in a rare Fox News interview and Biden/Harris made a deal with Mexico to hold back 400,000 illegal aliens from crossing into the U.S., but only until Election Day.

The plagiarism and lack of prosecutorial experience should surprise no one. Harris lacks the intelligence to write without plagiarizing sources or to be able to personally prosecute cartels, drug dealers, and organized crime. Take it from someone who tried dozens of civil cases in about 30 years of practicing law. It’s a stressful, demanding task. She’s not up to it.

The worst of the week came on Thursday with the news that the Biden-Harris team had made a deal with the Mexican government to keep about 400,000 illegal aliens in Mexico until Election Day, when they will be turned loose and be welcomed into the U.S. If anyone needed a reminder that Harris will keep the borders open if she’s elected, this is proof positive.

We need to remember that Harris insisted that the Israelis not enter the Gaza city of Rafah in pursuit of Hamas’s leaders and the hostages it still holds. There were seven Americans taken hostage on Oct. 7, 2023, three of whom are believed to still be alive. The other four were murdered by Hamas in captivity. Biden-Harris have done nothing to help get them back. Yahya Sinwar, leader of Hamas, was killed in an Israeli raid in Rafah on Thursday. He’d still be alive if the Israelis hadn’t ignored Harris and Biden.

While we’re at it, we should note that the totally politicized Justice Department is now suing Virginia because of its plan to expunge illegal aliens from the voting rolls. Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin is doing exactly what he should be but Harris and Biden are trying their hardest to keep him from doing his duty.

And we should also note that Harris said we should think about reparations to black Americans for slavery and was promising “loans” — to be forgiven by the government — for black people to open businesses. Buying votes is a hallowed tradition among Democrats.

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John Zogby is the founder of the Zogby Survey and senior partner at John Zogby Strategies. His latest book, Beyond the Horse Race: How to Read Polls and Why We Should, was just released. His podcast with son and managing partner and pollster Jeremy Zogby can be heard here. Follow him on X @ZogbyStrategies.

Jed Babbin is a Washington Examiner contributor and former deputy undersecretary of defense in the administration of former President George H.W. Bush. Follow him on X @jedbabbin.