Joe Biden has been nearly unequivocal in his support for Israel, but he's trying to steer clear of a volatile conflict roiling his own party over whether presidents of elite colleges should lose their jobs for how they addressed antisemitic rhetoric.

In a marked contrast from the more Bill Clinton- or early Barack Obama-like approach of occasionally wading into complicated political and cultural moments, Biden has largely declined to insert himself into the fracas over the testimony from the presidents of Harvard, MIT and the University of Pennsylvania. Each failed during a congressional hearing to decisively denounce calls for genocide against Jews as a violation of their campuses’ codes of conduct.

Biden’s decision to keep his distance reflects long-standing attitudes in the administration that it must be exceedingly careful in the battles it picks — and that in fast-moving situations, staying away from the fray is often the best approach.

Biden has remained unwavering in his backing of Israel and denounced antisemitism on multiple occasions, aides and others familiar with his thinking........

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