'Don't Kick the Left Wing in the Teeth': Harris Unveils New Running Mate
© AP Photo / Matt Rourke
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Harris rallied alongside her new running mate in Philadelphia Tuesday. Walz will continue to make appearances with Harris in the US states of Wisconsin, Michigan, North Carolina, Georgia, Arizona and Nevada as they campaign for a spot in the Oval Office.
Vice President Kamala Harris has chosen her running mate for the 2024 US presidential election. Tim Walz, 60, is a Minnesota governor who has a history of swaying Republican districts with progressive policies. Dan Lazare, an independent investigative journalist and author, joined Sputnik’s The Critical Hour Tuesday to discuss Harris’ pick.
“[Harris] feels she can't afford to kick the party's left-wing in the teeth and win. So, that seems to me why she's going with Walz,” said Lazare. “Walz is a very appealing guy. He's from a nice state, one of the most progressive states in the country. He himself has an interesting background as a teacher, as a congressman, as a governor, and a fairly progressive record.”
“I don't want to exaggerate, certainly, but he has been on the progressive side. So, I guess Harris chose the guy who she thinks will unite, best unite the Democratic Party's various factions,” he added.
Walz was responsible for kicking off a new, and now popular, attack against former President Donald Trump and his running mate Ohio Senator JD Vance by labeling the two as “weird." The label has resonated with Harris’ supporters and has proven difficult for Trump and other Republicans to respond to.
“I think there probably will be a debate after all this maneuvering takes place. I mean, I'd be very surprised if no debate occurs, number one. Number two, I've been saying all along that I think that Harris may actually be a better campaigner than people expect,” Lazare said.
“And Trump the last couple of weeks has looked, decidedly, ham-fisted. And I think that Walz versus Vance, I mean, Vance is a very smart guy, but Walz is intelligent also. It'll be very interesting. Certainly, they are politically very much opposed. So it'll be a lot of fun watching these guys,” he added.
Trump has reportedly backed out of a planned debate with Harris as he struggles to find a way to attack his new opponent. The 78-year-old previously said he was prepared to do “10 debates” with President Joe Biden, but is now dodging a debate with Harris who still plans to appear on September 10 on ABC, regardless of whether or not Trump is present. Trump has said he would like to change the debate's platform so it can be held by Fox News and would prefer for it to take place before a “full arena audience”.
“I think that Kamala [favors] the neocons,” said Lazare of the candidate's foreign policy views. “She will run a very Biden-esque foreign policy. She is extremely strong on Israel. She's careful about the optics, but she is nonetheless a very strong supporter of the Zionists and she has been absolutely abysmal during the Gaza war. I haven't seen her do anything that would indicate any real sympathy for the Palestinian side.”
“..All the stuff about Tim Walz being a nice guy and progressive, that's just window dressing. There is no doubt that the Democratic Party and the Washington foreign policy establishment are just arm and arm, and there's no deviation whatsoever from that war-like foreign policy,” Lazare explained. “I am sure that Harris will pursue exactly the same policy in the Ukraine and in Gaza, in Israel-Gaza and even with regard to China.”
“The US-Israeli alliance is as strong now as it has ever been,” he continued. “They just really don't care at all what Netanyahu does in Gaza. They just want to get the job finished as fast as possible. That's their only concern, and I haven't seen any deviation on her part from the party line. None whatsoever. It's been purely rhetorical at best.”
Fears of a regional war in the Middle East have been growing since the assassination of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed in an attack on his residence in Tehran. Hamas has blamed Israel and the US for Haniyeh's death and vowed retaliation. Intelligence Minister Ismail Khatib said Israel ordered the strike after receiving a green light from the US.
Nearly 40,000 people in Gaza have been killed since Israel’s operation in Gaza began in October, according to the territory's health ministry. The US has given Israel more aid than any other nation since World War II.
