Reuters World News - Harris bashes Trump, Democrat VP dilemma and Palestinian unity deal

Episode Date: July 24, 2024

Vice President Kamala Harris has attacked Donald Trump at her first campaign rally since replacing President Joe Biden as the Democratic presidential candidate. Harris faces a big decision on her running mate and time is tight. Palestinian rivals including Hamas and Fatah have agreed to form a unity government at talks hosted by China. Plus, New Zealand’s abuse scandal and Israel protests on Capitol Hill. Sign up for the Reuters Econ World newsletter here. Listen to the Reuters Econ World podcast here. Recommended read here. Visit the Thomson Reuters Privacy Statement for information on our privacy and data protection practices. You may also visit megaphone.fm/adchoices to opt out of targeted advertising. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, Kamala Harris makes her debut campaign speech, bashing Donald Trump over fear and hate, as she faces a key decision on her choice of running mate. And China says it's brokered a Palestinian unity deal, but doubts persist over how it would be implemented. It's Wednesday, July 24th. This is Reuters World News, bringing you everything you need to know from the front lines in 10 minutes every weekday. I'm Tara Oaks in Liverpool. A crowd in Wisconsin as Carmelah Harris makes her presidential campaign debut. So Wisconsin today I ask you, are you ready to get to work?

Giving a sense of how Harris will position herself in the election against Donald Trump, just a few days since President Joe Biden stepped aside. Jeff Mason covers the White House. Jeff, what big themes or attack lines are emerging from Harris's campaign? campaign so far. She's absolutely leaning into her background as a prosecutor, and that's something that Democrats were eager to see, particularly in the sense of prosecuting the case against Donald Trump. I took on perpetrators of all kinds. Predators who abused women, fraudsters, who ripped off consumers, cheaters, who broke the rules for their own gain.

So hear me when I say, I know Donald Trump's type. So it's that prosecutorial style, as well as the content behind that that she's leaning into. Also certainly leaning into economic themes, talking about child care, perhaps expanding President Biden's economic vision. So those are things that are popular with the base as well. I should also add to that, this is no surprise, that she's talking a lot of, about abortion and reproductive rights. We trust women to make decisions about their own body. It's the topic about which she is very strong,

but also that it's one that really resonates with the Democratic base, and they need to resonate. They need that energy. And beyond the policy issues, the vibes are different too, right? It's interesting to see some music choices. The Tom Petty song won't back down, which President Biden has been used. was out, and instead Vice President Harris walked on the stage to Beyonce's freedom.

And you had people dancing and there's an energy shift and there's a new sort of feeling out there in the Democratic electorate. We'll see if she sustains that. But the Harris can translate this energy into broad support remains to be seen. But a Reuters Ipsos poll taken after Biden dropped out, binds Harris with a two-point lead over Donald Trump, in a poll with a three-point margin of error. Trump has so far watched from the sidelines as Harris has launched her attempt to re-energize Democrats. Today, he'll get back in the game. The former president will appear at an event in Charlotte, North Carolina, a state that will be an important battleground in the election.

One thing that's still unknown is who Harris will pick as her running mate. We asked White House reporter Trevor Honeycutt to brief us on some of the current frontrunners. Some of the ones that are taken kind of most seriously include the governor of Pennsylvania, Josh Shapiro, and Mark Kelly, the senator from Arizona. Also, there's been talk about Roy Cooper, who's governor of North Carolina, which is a state that leans Republican, but Democrats think they have a good chance of being able to flip if they do really well. What does a VP pick need to accomplish here for Harris? The big thing a vice presidential candidate needs to do is deliver their state. So they are looking for somebody who, who has a strong track record in difficult states for Democrats to win competitive states and has a track record of showing that they can win in competitive elections against Republicans.

And so Kamala Harris really needs to guarantee, right, that she wins Pennsylvania. That's seen as a must-win state. And then when you look at some of the other states like Arizona, those are places where if Democrats have a good night there, they're probably winning the election. How unusual is this Viet Stakes, given the extreme timeline? So this is a really unusual process. Normally, you would have weeks, if not months, to narrow down a list of candidates, have a thorough background check and vetting process,

and then also do a bunch of polling to see how these candidates work. But given the timeline, Democrats are going to be picking their nominee now on August 7th, And Kamala Harris will want to get her pick done by then. Pro-Palestinian Jewish demonstrators inside Capitol Hill's cannon building rotunda. Wearing red t-shirts, they chanted, All people are won and free Palestine. The protests came ahead of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's speech to Congress today. Secret Service director Kimberley Chitl has resigned.

The agency has been under scrutiny for failing to say, stop the attempted assassination of Donald Trump. This is a dark and sorrowful day in New Zealand's history. And as a society and as a state, we should have done better. And I am determined that we will do so. New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, apologising after a public inquiry, found 200,000 people were abused in state and religious care.

The children, young people and vulnerable adults were abused over the last 70 years. Luxem promised reforms to the system, but the government faces billions of dollars in compensation claims. More than 200 people are now known to have died in two landslides in southern Ethiopia. That number could still rise as the search for survivors continues. Over in India, the government has assigned billions of dollars for job creation and for regions run by key coalition partners. in a budget aimed at cementing the coalition after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's election setback.

Boosted by a record dividend from the central bank, Modi allocated more than $5 billion for infrastructure and other projects in the home states of two key allies, cheering them, but prompting the opposition to call it an attempt to bribe the coalition. And if you're interested in how leaders balance their politics with economic research, Tune in to today's episode of Econ World Podcast, but Carmel Crimmons will be discussing Bidenomics. Biden himself has returned to Washington, D.C. after recovering from COVID, and is scheduled to address the nation at 8 p.m. Eastern on what lies ahead.

You can hear all about it in tomorrow's episode of Reuters World News. Palestinian rivals, including Hamas and Feta, have agreed to form a unity government at talks hosted by China. that's according to Beijing. It's a deal meant to deliver a post-war Gaza administration, but was quickly rejected by Israel. One of a sticking points is the day-after plan, how the Hamas-run enclave will be governed once the war ends. Nidal al-Magrabi has been reporting on it for us.

Nidal, what's in it for Fata? Why would they want to be in a unity government with Hamas when Israel say they're determined to eliminate Hamas? Yeah, Fatah wants to have a role in Gaza when the war is over. But whether they want to be in a same government with Hamas, this is another question. Fatah knows that Israel will not agree to that and they will oppose it. But that's not the only concern. The concern is the United States and donors may not come forward and pay for the reconstruction of Gaza.

and that's going to be a very difficult challenge to overcome. So far, and that's interesting enough, Fattah has not even commented on the declaration from Beijing, and that was noticeable and indicative to whether this is going to go anywhere forward or not. What's the significance of China brokering this deal? From speaking to analysts, the Chinese want to tell their Arab friends that they are engaging, in the Middle East and that they are trying to help.

But at the end of the day, we all know that when it comes to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, it is the United States which orchestrate who does what in this area. And we know that unless the United States is happy and approves these steps, the chances of success are very slim. Before we wipe out for today, it's time for the recommended read. today we go surfing. In The Perfect Wave, our reporters and graphics team take you inside the conditions teams from around the world will face in Tahiti as they battle for Olympic glory. You can find a link in today's pod description. And for more on any of the stories from today,

check out Reuters.com or the Reuters app. We'll be back tomorrow with our daily headline show. And to never miss an episode, subscribe on your favourite podcast player.