What A Day - Will Vice President Harris Follow Biden's Lead on Middle East Policy?

Episode Date: July 24, 2024

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in Washington, D.C., today to address a joint session of Congress. On Tuesday, hundreds of demonstrators opposed to the war in Gaza staged a sit-in at a congressional office building. Thousands more are expected to demonstrate today during Netanyahu’s speech. Inside the Capitol, nearly two dozen Democratic lawmakers say they will not attend the joint session. At the same time, both Vice President Kamala Harris and Sen. Patty Murray of Washington declined to preside over Netanyahu’s address. The Israeli prime minister is expected to meet with Harris and President Biden separately on Thursday. As Harris begins her presidential campaign in earnest, Politico national security reporter Eric Bazail-Eimil explains what a Harris foreign policy might look like.And in headlines: The head of the U.S. Secret Service resigned, convicted New Jersey Sen. Robert Menendez announced he’d resign next month, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer endorsed Harris’s campaign for president. Show Notes:Read and Subscribe to the What A Day Newsletter – https://tinyurl.com/bdzcrj7aWhat 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 24th. I'm Priyanka Arabindi. And I'm Juanita Tolliver, and this is What A Day, the show where we're wondering why Snoop Dogg was chosen to carry the United States torch at the Summer Olympics opening ceremony in Paris. Like, why? I think there is only one logical reason for this,

and it is because he is simply an expert on lighting up. It's the brand. The brand is strong. Truly, the brand is strong. On today's show, Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheadle announces her resignation after a heated hearing on the Hill. Plus, President Biden releases a statement about Sonia Massey, who was killed by police earlier this month. But first, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in Washington, D.C. today to address a joint session of Congress. Yemassi, who was killed by police earlier this month. But first, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in Washington, D.C. today to address a joint session of Congress. Netanyahu should not

expect a warm welcome in D.C. as protests started on Capitol Hill Tuesday afternoon and are expected to expand around the Capitol Hill complex throughout Wednesday. Inside the building, so far at least 21 Democratic lawmakers are boycotting the speech. Both Vice President Kamala Harris and Senator Patty Murray of Washington State declined to preside over Netanyahu's address. And Senator Ben Cardin of Maryland, the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, will be seated behind Netanyahu for today's address. Following his speech, Netanyahu is scheduled to meet with President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris separately on Thursday. And he has a meeting scheduled with

former President Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago for Friday. This is Netanyahu's first international trip since the start of the Israel-Hamas war. And since the International Criminal Court said it is seeking a warrant for his arrest for possible war crimes in Gaza in a ruling issued in May. Yeah, very, very closely watched here. I mean, no love lost between Bibi and Biden. It will be very interesting to see what happens between him and Vice President Harris. I mean, tell us more. What do we know about all of this? Yeah, as Vice President Harris starts her 2024 presidential bid, questions have been swirling about her alignment with President Biden's unwavering support for Israel and the

potential for her to publicly express a divergent stance on the war. To get a sense of Harris's position on Gaza and what her foreign policy posture would look like if she is elected president, I spoke with Eric Bazel- in Mill. He's a national security reporter for Politico. I started by asking him how the vice president's tone and position on Gaza compares to President Biden's. Vice President Harris is a supporter of Israel. She has longstanding relationships with Israeli political leaders going back to when she was a U.S. senator. You know, she visited Israel, met with Prime Minister Netanyahu, then opposition leader Isaac Herzog. So she supports Israel. She supports the Abraham Accords.

But as we've seen throughout the war, Harris has been a lot more forward on messaging than the administration. She's also been much more clear about humanitarian implications. Vice President Harris has also been within the administration much more critical of Netanyahu and more in support of pushing the administration to take a tougher line on Netanyahu and really hold Netanyahu more to account about the delivery of humanitarian aid into the territory. Harris supporters will also emphasize that there's not much daylight on some of the policy aspects, the broader way to solve the Israel-Palestine conflict. But when it comes to the war, there are important nuances and there are important shifts that a Harris presidency

could continue to go down. Now, with that in mind, I want to ask about one more comparison. How does her stance on Gaza compare to Donald Trump, her would-be opponent, potentially? If there is a question about there being daylight between her and President Biden, there's absolutely daylight between her and former President Trump. The reality is, is that former President Trump very much supports the objectives of the Israeli government right now. He has not been particularly critical of the end result of the war. And advisors and those close to the former president

have emphasized that a Trump administration would not be as harsh or punitive towards increased settlement expansion, the violence that we've seen in the West Bank. Jared Kushner, there were some widely reported comments about redeveloping the Gaza Strip. There would still be very ironclad support for the Israeli government

under a Trump administration. We know one of the big issues that President Biden faced when he was in this election was his declining support among progressive voters over his support for Israel, particularly Arab American voters and young voters across demographics. So we saw this with the uncommitted campaign that began in Michigan, where 100,000 plus voters opted to vote uncommitted in their state's primary. But that movement expanded nationally and even earned delegates to the Democratic Convention. So will Vice President Harris have an opportunity to win back some of these folks who had turned away from Joe Biden? A lot of that is going to be decided in the next couple days, how she handles

Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu's visit to Washington this week. She has decided not to attend the speech in person. So that image of her potentially sitting behind Netanyahu while he addresses Congress, that won't exist. You know, there will be a private meeting while the Israeli delegation is here, but certainly not that same kind of visceral image of the vice president above the shoulders of, you know, very polarizing Israeli leader for those on the left. The State Department has also done, you know, its own internal surveys. We reported on this in our National Security Daily newsletter. In the Middle East and in large parts of the world, the vice president is seen as a much more effective messenger on the Middle East and on the situation in Gaza.

That's why critics, those folks who have resigned from the administration in protest of Gaza policy, say that there's an opportunity there, both politically and also from a fundamental peacebuilding perspective, you know, to shift in tone under Vice President Harris. So what should we expect to hear in a report out from that one on one meeting that she will be having with Netanyahu later this week? Well, we'll probably see. And what you could expect to look for is, you know, discussion of the humanitarian situation, conversations about, you know, escalation at the northern border with Lebanon, what the game plan is for exiting the Gaza Strip and the continuation of military operations, what the day after plan looks like.

I'm not sure that we're going to see a lot of specific details in the public readouts, but certainly we can anticipate that those issues will be discussed during the conversations. I also do not think that it'll differ too much from what President Biden discusses with the prime minister later this week. And you spoke to some of the federal officials who have resigned over the past several months due to Biden's pro-Israel stance. Tell us more about those individuals

and what they think about the potential impact Kamala Harris could have on U.S. involvement in the war if she is elected. It's not a huge, huge pool, but there's been a group of a certain sizable number. It's included appointees at the Interior Department, the Department of Education, and high-ranking, you know, spokespeople at the State Department, including the State Department's spokesperson specifically for the Middle East.

You know, one of the most important details that we're seeing coming up from them is they see Harris as somebody who could be a little bit more persuaded. And they also see, you know, some potential given the fact that she's spoken and she's thought about what the next steps look like. How does the United States move forward towards a long lasting peace, you know, between Israelis and Palestinians? They see it as, you know, not a closed deal

in part because Harris is from a different generation than the president, you know, that didn't grow up necessarily with that same idea of ironclad unconditional support for Israel. Harris is more a product of this more recent landscape, right, that we've seen under Netanyahu, especially the last several years of Netanyahu's first premiership, you know, where we saw settlement expansion, we saw, you know, volleys of violence between Israelis and Palestinians. So that context also informs it a little. I was going to add another variable of that

is that she's still establishing her posture in terms of foreign policy and on a global stage. She's been developing that more as vice president, whereas much of her career prior to now has been as a prosecutor and a senator from the state of California. But Politico recently reviewed more than 100 of Harris's publicly available calls and meetings

with world leaders during her time as vice president. What do we know so far about how she would handle other big foreign policy issues like the war in Ukraine and trade with China? When it comes to Ukraine, Vice President Harris will not differ fundamentally from the president's strategy of supporting Ukraine. The question will be more so how much will the United States be able to marshal resources towards Ukraine and rally European allies? There is a difference. The president came into, you know, the White House with over five decades of experience. He was chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and vice president for eight years

and had a very heavy foreign policy portfolio. By definition, the vice president would come in with somewhat less experience and significantly less developed relationships. That doesn't mean they don't exist. She's spoken with French President Emmanuel Macron. She has met with Zelensky multiple times. On Asia, which is the other big bucket of her foreign policy engagements, there are certainly more fleshed out relationships. She's been to multiple ASEAN summits, gatherings of Asian world leaders. And, you know, the administration has emphasized that they see Vice President Harris as an integral part of their Indo-Pacific strategy and their outreach to allies. I do think that we'll see continuations of the broad foreign policy vision. Some of it is going to be shaped in terms of

implementation by how much she builds relationships in the next couple of months. And then at the beginning of her first term, if she is elected in November, some of it is also going to depend on the people who are in her orbit. Who's her secretary of state? Who's her running mate? Who are the national security advisor, the secretary of defense? Because that's also a difference between her and the president, where Jake Sullivan was a longtime aide to him.

Antony Blinken, the secretary of state, was his national security advisor as vice president. There was more of a Biden world on foreign policy. Vice President Harris won't have that luxury if she's elected. She's going to be starting a little bit more from scratch. So that is also going to influence how it works out in the end. Also, another comparison point with what a President Harris international support team looks like compared to President Trump and his posture globally. The difference won't be so dependent on advisors between Harris and Trump. A lot of what a Trump

foreign policy would look like in a second term is going to depend on who is a secretary of state and his national security advisor and who's in his ear, which is why European allies are antsy about Senator J.D. Vance being his running mate, because they see Vance's history saying he doesn't really care what happens to Ukraine. It's those issues that provide more anxiety for European leaders. You know, if Vice President Harris picks Senator Mark Kelly or Governor Andy Beshear or some other person as their running mate, they likely won't experience the same kind of anxiety or the same kinds of private voicings of concern. And you know, a Harris presidency will be very committed to international alliances. Her advisors are liberal internationalists.

They're going to support NATO. They're going to support the United Nations. You're still going to see a very human rights centered focus on foreign policy. Of course, under the Biden administration, that has come under its own tensions, right? Trying to put human rights forward in face of geopolitical constraints and realities. But there's still at least going to be a rhetorical intention. A Trump presidency will focus a lot more on trade. It will focus a lot more on investments, or it'll look at issues through the prism of immigration. The jury is still very much out on what a second Trump presidency's foreign policy will look like, but it will be different than if there was a Harris presidency. That was my conversation with Eric Bazal-Emil,

national security reporter for Politico, and we will continue to bring you all updates on all of Netanyahu's meetings this week. That is the latest for now. We'll get to some headlines in just a moment, but if you like our show, please make sure to subscribe and share it with your friends. We'll be right back with some headlines. Headlines. U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheadle resigned her post on Tuesday as the agency faces

a barrage of questions over how a 20-year-old gunman was able to carry out an assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump. In a resignation letter to staff obtained by multiple news outlets, Cheadle wrote, quote, I do not want my calls for resignation to be a distraction from the great work each and every one of you do towards our vital mission. Cheadle faced bipartisan calls to step down during a congressional hearing on Monday. During that hearing, she insisted that she was still the best person to lead the agency, but admitted that the shooting was a, quote, colossal failure. New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez announced he will resign from the Senate next month

following his recent conviction on charges including bribery, extortion, and acting as a foreign agent. In a letter sent Tuesday to New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, Menendez wrote, While I fully intend to appeal the jury's verdict all the way and including to the Supreme Court, I do not want the Senate to be involved in any lengthy process that will detract from its important work. Menendez has served in the Senate since 2006 and was once the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, but his political career took its latest nosedive in 2022 when the FBI searched his home and seized a Mercedes Benz, 13 gold bars, which were hidden in clothing in his closet, and $550,000 in cash. Yeah, just normal, normal things to have in your house.

Nothing to see here. We should say that Menendez's decision to wait until August 20th to leave the Senate is relatable. I mean, senators get paid on the 20th of every month. I'm sorry. Yikes. Dead. That is so yikes.

I mean, he doesn't have his gold bars anymore so yeah he gets to get cash somehow yeah i also i'm sorry we need to go back to the quote he doesn't want to detract from the important work of the senate by um dragging them into this mess then why did you do all of this in the first place what is wrong with you and this isn't his first trial related to fraud and other claims. So yeah, he's a mess. What are you talking about? Earlier this week, Illinois State Police released horrifying body cam footage showing a police

officer shooting and killing Sonia Massey, a 36-year-old mother of two. Early in the morning on July 6th, Massey, who is black, called police to report a person outside of her home in Springfield, Illinois. The two officers who came to the scene didn't find anyone outside the house and instead became suspicious of her. While searching inside her home, Officer Sean Grayson, who is white, threatened to shoot Massey in the face while she was handling a pot of hot water near the stove. Grayson yelled at her to drop the pot. She apologized and ducked down with the pot still in her hands. Grayson then shot Massey multiple times with at least one of the bullets hitting her in the face. Last week, Grayson was fired and charged with first degree murder. He has pleaded not guilty. Following the release of

the body cam footage, President Joe Biden released a statement that reads in part, quote, Sonia called the police because she was concerned about a potential intruder. When we call for help, all of us as Americans, regardless of who we are or where we live, should be able to do so without fearing for our lives. Unfortunately, this statement has been made far too many times for far too many years with little to no change. Right. I mean, this is sadly a reality, especially for people in black and brown households and communities. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer endorsed Vice President Harris's campaign for president on

Tuesday, one day after former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi threw her support behind Harris. And as the vice president gains more ground in her bid for the White House, many are wondering who she'll tap to be her VP. NBC News reported on Tuesday that the Harris campaign has requested vetting paperwork from five potential running mates, most of whom are Democratic state governors. Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer are among those who were contacted along with Democratic Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona. But it is possible that Harris could pick someone who isn't on this list. Other rumored contenders include Transportation Secretary and

former Mayor of South Bend, Indiana, Pete Buttigieg, Kentucky Governor Andy Brashear, and Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker. All right, love a good beep stakes, but what we do know for sure, whomever Harris picks will undoubtedly have more charisma and more charm than the Republican VP nominee, J.D. Vance, who had a truly lackluster first rally performance this week. He tried to show that he was country by bragging about drinking a diet Mountain Dew. It got virtually no applause, very sparse pity laughs. I think one very much gave us flashbacks to Jeb Bush asking the crowd to clap. The vibes are bad. The vibes are bad. The vibes are bad.

Also, that space looked really empty. Like, I'm not even sure how many people were in that room with him, especially since he couldn't even fill up the riser behind where he was standing on the podium. So I'm just like, yeah, you're giving lackluster. And I don't think he's got anything else. It's a tough look. And you also know that Trump heard this Diet Mountain Dew thing

and was like, he's a coke guy. He doesn't't do that he doesn't fuck with that green shit no no no i i feel like he has bigger issues that should be concerning him about jd vance no no no but it's trump it's always the aesthetic things do you think he's doing it because it's like green like charlie xcx and he's trying to be brat? I appreciate how intentional you're being. He is not. He doesn't have the range. The symbolism is there.

He's trying to be brat and he never will because you can't be brat if you're trying. He literally doesn't have the range. No. Absolutely no. And those are the headlines. One more thing before we go. Just when we thought the veep stakes were over, a Harris-led ticket now gets the chance to name her own VP at the upcoming DNC. In the newest subscriber-exclusive episode of Inside 2024, White House alums Dan Pfeiffer and Alyssa Mastromonaco break down what it's like to onboard a new vice president to the campaign

and speculate who might be leading in the race for Harris's top choice. To get access to this exclusive series and more, sign up at crooked.com slash friends now. That is all for today. If you like the show, make sure you subscribe, leave a review, place your bets on your favorite VP candidate, and tell your friends to listen. And if you're into reading and not just reports of JD Vance flaming out on the campaign trail like me, what it is also a nightly newsletter. Check it out and subscribe at cricket.com slash subscribe. I'm Juanita Tolliver. I'm Priyanka Arabindi. And light the way Snoop. He's definitely got a plug in Paris. Like he wouldn't sign up to be on the ground unless he had a plug. No, no chance.

Of course he does. Or better yet, I feel like he has a staffer who just provides and rolls and has his stash ready to go. Yes, I think that is a job. Yeah, he has a job. Yes. He's got a team. 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, Greg Walters, and Julia Clare. Our showrunner is Erica Morrison, and our executive producer is Adrian Hill. Our theme music is by Colin Gilliard, and Kshaka.