What A Day - All The Vice President's White Men

Episode Date: July 31, 2024

Vice President Kamala Harris took the stage on Tuesday at a campaign rally in Atlanta in front of a crowd of thousands. She was joined by some celebrity heavy hitters, including rappers Quavo and Megan Thee Stallion. The rally underscores the surge of voter enthusiasm we've seen since Harris stepped into the presidential race. Her next major task is picking a running mate, a decision she's expected to make in the next couple of days. And on the Republican side, Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance offers a cautionary tale of how a problematic V.P. pick can drag down a campaign's momentum. Kadia Goba, political reporter for Semafor, breaks down the Democratic veepstakes.And in headlines: The head of Project 2025 is stepping down, the U.S. Senate passed a bill requiring tech companies to actively shield kids from dangerous content online, and Simone Biles led Team U.S.A back to Olympic gold in the women's gymnastics team finals. Show Notes:Subscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/3kk4nyz8What A Day – YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@whatadaypodcastFollow us on Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/crookedmedia/For a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday

it's wednesday july 31st i'm priyanka arabindi and i'm juanita toliver and this is what a day the show where we're on the edge of our seats waiting for vice president kamala harris to pick a running mate yeah i keep seeing those tiktoks of the trader joe's wine section that says interesting whites and just all of the presidential potential hopefuls. Very exciting for me. I like it. On today's show, the Senate passed a bill to protect kids online, and now it heads to the House.

Plus, a big congratulations to the USA women's gymnastics team and other news from the Paris Olympics. Yeah, listen, if Juanita and I had it our way, this would be a Paris Olympics show. 100%. The gymnastics team, hype. So exciting. But we have more on that in just a moment. But first, on Tuesday, Vice President Kamala Harris took the stage at a campaign rally

in Atlanta in front of a crowd of thousands. And the vice president was joined by some heavy hitters, including rappers Quavo and Megan Thee Stallion. Now I know my ladies in the crowd love they party. Real hot, girl. And if you want to keep loving your party, you know who to vote for. Hit the beat, like, you know Lil' Juke.

Hey! Sick. I mean, I'm into hotties for Harris 100%. 100%. How are you not hyped just like hearing that? The rally underscored the enthusiasm that we have been witnessing among voters since Vice President Harris stepped into the presidential race. It is palpable.

In the week after President Joe Biden announced that he was exiting the race, the Harris campaign raised roughly $200 million and signed up more than 170,000 volunteers. Those numbers are bananas. And I'll just say from an anecdotal perspective, Juanita and I are having a lot more fun doing this show in the last couple weeks after this. Meanwhile, former President Trump and his campaign have been spending a lot of the last week

defending his vice presidential nominee, Ohio Senator J.D. Vance. On Monday, Trump went on Fox News and completely misrepresented the numerous negative comments Vance has made about women who don't have children. He likes family. I think a lot of people like family and sometimes it doesn't work out. And you know why? You don't meet the right person or you don't meet any person, but you're just as good in many cases, a lot better than a person that's in a family situation. OK, number one, where is this loyalty coming

from Donald Trump? This feels ridiculous because I've never seen him stand up for anybody ever. Ever. And number two, wouldn't he become the family man? Like, what? No. Now, it won't take much

for whomever Vice President Harris elects to outshine J.D. Vance, but there is still a ton of interest around who will end up being Vice President Harris's running mate and what they of interest around who will end up being Vice President Harris's running mate and what they could add to the ticket. Yeah, Vice President Harris is expected to announce her VP pick within days. According to reports, Harris is scheduled to visit Philadelphia with her VP pick on Tuesday, August 6th, so that is just next week, and tour

other battleground states together throughout the week. To dig in a little deeper and make sense of the veepstakes, I spoke earlier with Kadia Goba, a political reporter for Semaphore. And she started by explaining to me what one Democratic strategist meant when she told Kadia that the vice presidential candidates are, quote, the most exciting group of white men I have ever seen. Her point was that historically, typically, white men have been a little more bland in the political spectrum. And these are kind of lively if you point to people like Waltz or Shapiro, who have been just very, you know, forward and outspoken about their support for Harris. It's an interesting phenomenon. Someone asked me the other day, why do I think a woman won't be on the ticket?

I don't know, right? I can only point to what Democratic strategists and more importantly, people who are influencing the people in their districts, like lawmakers, like people on the ground, what they are saying. And it's been widely reported that the Harris campaign is looking for someone to even out the ticket. And that probably means that her perception, she's perceived as being very progressive or much more progressive, I should say, than Joe Biden. So that means someone a little more moderate. There are a lot of names being thrown around in the mix here. I'm going to ask you to break down more about a few of them in just a minute. But if you had to narrow it down at this point, which of these contenders do you think it'll

end up coming down to? You know, based on what people are texting me, people in the know, people that are close to the campaign, I keep hearing the name Shapiro. I also keep hearing the name Kelly. But I also hear Walt. And I think Walt is coming from this person that they just like, who has been very vocal on television, who has been saying the right things. This word weird that Democrats seem to be very excited about, that came from a comment that he made. These are weird people on the other side. They want to take books away. They want to be in your exam room. That's what it comes down to. And don't get sugarcoating this. These are weird people on the other side. They want to take books away. They want to be in your exam room. That's what it comes down to. And don't, you know, get sugarcoating this.

These are weird ideas. Listen to them speak. Listen to how they talk about things. Strategically, when I talk to people, they say, you know, it's probably between Shapiro and Kelly, but they really, really like Walt. Yeah. So let's break down some of these leading contenders to join the ticket. No particular order here, just kind of going down the list. But you mentioned Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro.

What would he bring to this ticket and what are any potential downsides of adding him? Sure. Yeah. So people like Shapiro because the first thing they think about is Pennsylvania. I got to be honest. When I talk to Republicans, his name consistently comes up. And their argument is, hey, if Democrats win Pennsylvania, that means Republicans are going to have to sweep the other swing states. As you know, Pennsylvania is a swing state. That is pretty, pretty tough, right? So here's this governor, he's very popular in Pennsylvania, bringing him on the ticket that could swing that state, which would be detrimental for Republicans. At the same time, he'll be a first, he'll be a Jewish vice president, and people like his stance. He kind of toes the line, talking about anti-Semitism, but also

one of the drawbacks is he said the students protesting out and about, he kind of referred to them as like the KKK. And that probably upset a lot of progressives. There's also been a lot of talk about Arizona Senator Mark Kelly. You mentioned him as well. What are the pros and cons about him? Yeah, so Mark Kelly is a senator representing Arizona. He is married to Gabby Gidford, who experienced that horrific shooting a few years ago, who was a member of Congress. So people automatically think, well, in terms of gun

safety, his wife has a true testament of that. But also, Mark Kelly is one of those rare Democrats in the Senate that was very critical about the border. Now, when you talk to the Trump campaign, that is one of their big things that they tell you that they are going to go after Kamala Harris on. They call her the border czar, right? And they talk about the influx of migrants coming across during the Biden administration. So if she has someone, back to that point about evening out the ticket, that moderates especially think that will curb or have some influence on her decision making when it comes to the border, he is going to be a prime candidate there. On the downside, a lot of people don't want to mess with the Senate balance by removing him. There's a Democratic governor right now, and she would replace him or appoint the new person.

But if that person has to run again, it could strike an uneven balance in the Senate and mess up the majority. Totally. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear is also in the mix, perhaps less well-known, like, everywhere. But tell us more about him. Bashir, like Waltz, is getting a lot of recognition right now because he's at campaign stumping for the vice president. He is also very good on television and very good at stumping. So, you know, he has gained some popularity. And I will say a bunch of progressives signed on to a letter saying that him and Waltz are their two picks.

So that kind of, I would imagine, has some influence on where the vice president is looking for our next VP as well. And then you keep mentioning Minnesota Governor Tim Waltz. He is crushing it on TV lately. As you said, I see the clips everywhere every single day. What kind of put him in contention? And you gave a little bit of your breakdown earlier, but tell us more about what he would bring potentially.

You know, he's just a great spokesperson right now for the Harris campaign. He is in the middle of this new energized Democratic Party that we've seen in the past week and a half or two weeks since Joe Biden said he wasn't going to run for election. He is right in the middle of it. And people are feeling that. With that said, he is perceived as more progressive than the other people that we just talked about. And for that reason, I think moderates might be a little shy to sort of back him. So it's kind of a toss up. Let's talk about the other side. J.D. Vance has not exactly been the strongest choice for a VP candidate. He, of course,

was a never Trumper. And all the things he once said about the former president are coming to light in addition to his very public recent missteps. So tell us more about why he was the pick and about some of those missteps and how they've been perceived. The campaign hasn't been overtly talking about why other than he's just a great guy. But, you know, a lot of people, the scuttlebutt behind the scenes is that he brought a lot of tech money to the campaign, and that could be a benefit for Donald Trump and his campaign. But also, despite all of this stuff

about like the childless cat ladies and stuff like that, before he was picked, I got a lot of red flags from Republicans who said, you know, he just doesn't move the party forward or add anything to the party. Why bring in someone who just repeats your own rhetoric and has the MAGA contingency in the fold? So he's not faring well. And I just know Trump and his campaign would much rather be talking about and slamming Kamala Harris rather than defending their VP pick. That was my conversation with Kadia Goba, political reporter for Semaphore. That's the latest for now. We'll get to some headlines in a moment. but if you like our show, make sure to subscribe and share with your friends. We'll be back after some ads.

Let's wrap up with some headlines. Headlines. Paul Danz, a former Trump administration official, has stepped down as the head of Project 2025 at the Heritage Foundation. Danz helped design Project 2025 as a kind of radically conservative blueprint for the next Republican administration. Danz's exit comes amid repeated efforts by the Trump campaign to distance itself from Project 2025 as Democrats make it a liability for Republicans. In a threatening statement, the Trump campaign said, quote, reports of Project

2025's demise would be greatly welcomed and should serve as notice to anyone or any group trying to misrepresent their influence with President Trump and his campaign, it will not end well for you. Okay, screech that record. Project 2025 is still very much a real thing written by former Trump officials. I just want to make that clear.

The only thing that is certain out of all of this is that if you align yourself with Trump and the tides change for whatever reason, he will throw you under the bus without a second thought. Yes, it will not end well for you. That is what we know. But as much as Trump wants to run away from Project 2025, he still supports many of its proposals like mass deportations, rolling back environmental protections and gutting the civil service. So Trump can run from it, but he cannot hide. Absolutely not. The U.S. Senate passed legislation on Tuesday that would require tech companies to actively shield kids from dangerous

content online. The law requires online platforms to protect children and teens from content that promotes suicide, eating disorders, substance abuse, and other harmful behaviors, as well as targeted advertising. The measure also prevents companies from collecting personal data from users under the age of 17, raising the limit from kids under 13. This is the first time Congress has passed a child online safety law since, get this, 1998. Wow. When the internet was on AOL CDs being mailed to us. Truly astounding. It is just worlds and worlds apart. Many tech companies like X and Snap, the parent company of the app Snapchat, have shown support for the bill.

But NetChoice, a lobbying group that represents some of these social media giants, argues that the law violates the First Amendment because of how it could be used to censor certain user content. Okay, like zero regard for the kids, I guess. Cool. The bill now heads to the House, where Speaker Mike Johnson says he's, quote, committed to working to find consensus on the legislation. Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has agreed to pay Texas $1.4 billion to settle

a lawsuit over its use of facial recognition data. The deal was announced by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Tuesday. He filed the suit back in 2022, accusing Meta of using and storing millions of Texans' facial ID data without their consent, a violation of a state law. Meta settled a similar suit brought by Illinois a few years ago, paying the state roughly half a billion dollars. The company still faces a massive lawsuit brought by Illinois a few years ago, paying the state roughly half a billion dollars. The company still faces a massive lawsuit brought by more than 40 states over allegations it purposefully built technology that was addicting to kids and teens and lied about the risks. Judging by how this has gone so far, not looking so hot for Meta. And finally, what we are most excited about, your daily dose of Olympic news.

Simone Biles added another gold medal to her collection on Tuesday when the USA women's team placed first in the gymnastics finals. It was electric. This makes Biles the most decorated American gymnast with a whopping eight gold medals. Not just the most decorated woman gymnast, the most decorated gymnast, period. Italy took second place on the podium. This is the country's first Olympic medal in women's gymnastics in 96 years. And Brazil finished in third, taking home the country's first ever team medal in the sport. Just an incredible day all around. Over on the tennis courts, Coco Gauff, the second ranked women's tennis player in the world left the games on Tuesday after losing a tough match against Croatia's Dana Vekic by one point

Goff was seen arguing with the umpire who made the call that ultimately gave Vekic the win I'm also so proud of Coco Goff for advocating for herself we've seen her have to do this multiple times it's truly unfortunate it's happening on the international stage, but I'm proud of you, Coco. And one more time for the U.S. women's gymnastics team, because I'm so thrilled for them. This was the best round of happy tears I have cried in a couple of years.

I'm so grateful. I'm crying happy tears every night at the Olympics. These girls, the men's gymnastics, everyone's just crushing it. It's so exciting. The Olympics fever is just like, let it take you over. It's amazing.

And there's more to come. The team still has to compete in individual events in a couple of days. Like, I'm really, really excited, y'all. I'm going to be glued to my TV. Keep crying, everybody. Keep watching. Keep crying. And those are the headlines.

One more thing before we go, the Supreme Court might be on break, but the conservative agenda is still going full steam ahead. Project 2025 is a 900 page far right wish list that lays out a hyper specific and bone chillingly fascist roadmap for a second Trump administration. Over at Strict Scrutiny, our favorite trio of badass constitutional law professors is breaking down the full 900-page document in a four-part series within your Monday episodes. Melissa, Leah, and Kate scoured all the fine print for you because lawyers are sick freaks who kind of love that shit. Stay informed about the far-right agenda and its real-life implications for tens of millions of Americans as we head into this election cycle by listening to Strict Scrutiny wherever you get your podcasts or on YouTube. That is all for today. If you like the show, make sure you subscribe, leave a review, keep calling JD Vance a weird Christian nationalist freak, and tell your friends to listen. And if you're into reading and not just about meta being fined over a billion

dollars like me, What A Day is also a nightly newsletter. Check it out and subscribe at Cricut.com slash subscribe. I'm Juanita Tolliver. I'm Priyanka Arabindi. And we're patriotic about Simone Biles. Like exclusively because on one hand, yes, this country

is really fucked up. But on the other hand, go USA! Red, white, and blue, go USA, baby! Yes, truly having the best time. It is amazing. What a Day is a production of Crooked Media. It's recorded and mixed by Bill Lance. Our associate producer is Raven Yamamoto. We had production help today from Michelle Alloy, Ethan Oberman, John Milstein, Greg Walters, and Julia Clare. Our showrunner is Erica Morrison, and our executive producer is Adrienne Hill.

Our theme music is by Colin Gilliard and Kashaka.