Joe Biden 'Pressured' Benjamin Netanyahu After Oct. 7 Attacks in Bid to Prevent All-Out War With Iran, New Book Claims: 'That's the Deal, Pal'
Brett McGurk details a tense conversation between Joe Biden and Benjamin Netanyahu in his upcoming book.
Oct. 1 2026, Published 12:45 p.m. ET
Joe Biden allegedly pressured Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shortly after the October 7 terror attacks, RadarOnline.com can report.
Brett McGurk details the phone call in his upcoming book, Brink: Inside the Race to Free the October 7th Hostages.
Author Brett McGurk Details Tense Oval Office Discussion
In Brett McGurk's new book, he details a blunt conversation Biden had with Netanyahu shortly after the October 7 terror attacks.
McGurk was the National Security Council Coordinator under Biden, and according to him, he and other officials feared that Israel could face the "largest ballistic-missile attack in history" if a ceasefire with Hamas was not reached.
Moreover, a regional war would have been a huge liability for Biden in the 2024 presidential race. Thus, his team "wanted him to appear strong and in command, not captive to events."
McGurk describes a tense Oval Office discussion that included both Secretary of State Antony Blinken and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan.
It was followed by the call to Netanyahu, before which Biden, according to McGurk, bluntly asked, "What the f--- am I telling this guy?"
"Biden jumped in," McGurk claims in his book. "'Bibi, man, what the f--- are you doing?'"
Joe Biden to Benjamin Netanyahu: 'You Think I'm Santa Claus?'
According to McGurk, Biden threatened to cut off military aid to Israel.
"He gripped the phone tight," McGurk continues. "'You think I'm Santa Claus? No Santa in Israel, pal.'"
He further claims, "When Netanyahu asked what he meant, Biden said he could cut off military aid to Israel with the snap of a finger, leaving the country on its own. Netanyahu retorted that Israel would defend itself even without the United States. (We later learned that he concluded from this call that we were cutting military supplies)."
McGurk claims Biden stopped Netanyahu in his tracks when he tried to chalk the October 7 terror attacks up to 'miscommunication.'
McGurk goes on, "Returning to his prepared points, Biden made specific requests regarding humanitarian aid and opening additional crossings into northern Gaza. Netanyahu began to discuss Israel’s preliminary assessment of the strike on the aid workers, claiming that it was more complicated than what was being reported in the news – a tragic miscommunication."
Netanyahu was stopped in his tracks.
'Brink: Inside the Race to Free the October 7th Hostages'
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McGurk's new book, 'Brink: Inside the Race to Free the October 7th Hostages,' is slated for release on October 6.
"'I don't want to hear it, Bibi,'" Biden told him, according to McGurk. "He said he'd help defend Israel against Iran, but then the U.S. would move immediately to end the war and free the hostages. 'That's the deal, pal.' He hung up abruptly. It was a short call."
McGurk writes, "If not for the pending Iranian attack, the U.S. might have taken irreversible measures against Israel at this juncture. My own mind wrestled with whether this might have been a better course."
Brink: Inside the Race to Free the October 7th Hostages is slated for release on October 6, 2026.
