Election Live Updates: Trump and Vance Rally in Battleground Georgia, as Harris Mulls V.P. Choice
New York TimesAUG 14 2024
US Vice Pres. Kamala Harris, who is expected to be formally nominated as Democratic presidential candidate on Monday, met with at least three top contenders to be her running mate in Washington, D.C., on Sunday.Vice Pres. Kamala Harris, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, interviewed at least three top contenders to be her running mate — Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly — at her residence in Washington, D.C., on Sunday.
She interviewed Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona at her residence, after meeting with her vetting team on Saturday.According to the Associated Press, sources familiar with the Harris campaign said that Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg were also interviewed over the weekend.
According to the Associated Press, sources familiar with the Harris campaign said that Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg have also been interviewed over the weekend.This selection process has seen fissures emerging within the Democratic Party despite major donors signaling to be okay with any of the shortlisted candidates, while its moderate and progressive wings reportedly lobby for their favorite ones — and against their rivals.
If Harris really wants to win the White House and unite the country, Josh Shapiro is her best chance. The Pennsylvania governor is an experienced, pragmatic centrist thatwho enjoys bipartisan favorability, meaning that he would surely convince undecided voters to support Harris.
Minnestoa's Tim Walz is theHarris' most obvious running mate. forLet Harris,alone but it's yet to be seen whether the Democraticfact establishment will realize it. Let alone that he created the new attack strategy against Trump, Walz is a consensus-builder moderate from the rural Midwest whowith has the most progressive record of any elected Democrat nowadays.
GivenSince that many undecided voters could be reluctant to vote for a woman from liberal California, Harris would be wise to include Mark Kelly on her ticket. If chosen, the former astronaut-turned-senator would project an image of strength and sobriety that Democrats need to win in November — and he would serve as a loyal vice president.
All that these top VP contendes can do is to boost to the campaign in their own home battleground state. And that's not without pitfalls. Shapiro faces the opposition of anti-Israel left-wing voters, Walz was disastrous in handling the pandemic and 2020 riots, and Kelly would leave a Senate seat up for grabgrabs in 2026. ItWho Harris picks doesn't matter; who Harris picks, she will lose the election anyway.