I'm further to the left of Harris on most things, but to be honest, the enthusiasm of/for her campaign and sense of hope has been the best thing to happen to my mental health in years, and I think a lot of folks feel that way. If she picked Shapiro, it would kill momentum for ME, and that's saying a lot considering I'm Jewish and would otherwise love if she picked a Jewish running mate.
Agreed and he won’t win PA for her…she can do it herself. No one in PA is going to vote for bc she chose him vs someone else. I’m in PA and he’s not super popular. I’ve said this before but Dems only win PA if you get unlikely voters to vote in Philly…the rest of the rest is primarily Republicans and they don’t like Shapiro. Bad choice imo
as a Jew and PA resident, I agree with you. The right will hammer him on the cover up of his aid's sexual harassment because irony & hypocrisy have no effect on them and this will stick, especially with women; they will remind the left of his stance on school vouchers (though he knows that moderates do not want tax dollars to help rich people pay for private schools or to go to religious schools and he not only vetoed a proposal, he hasn't brought it up again). The right will also find a way to hammer on his "volunteer service with the IDF" which wasn't him serving, it was a school service project on kibbutzes and an army base (he went to Akiba which is a Jewish day school in the Philly burbs) and his skepticism in an op/ed about the Oslo Accords (his language volunteering with the Israeli army implies military service). Most Diaspora Jews, even those of us who are hopeful and have pushed for Israel to give back the West Bank and make other concessions, are skeptical that concessions and a 2-state solution will lead to peace. We want Israel to try but in our hearts most of us think that anything less than the destruction of Israel and eradication of Jews from the Middle East will placate Hamas and Hezbollah. Right now, we're also acutely aware that Netanyahu is not only the co-architect (with Hamas) of the genocide of Palestinians but will also be the reason enough on the left will happily support the right wingers when it comes to a "final solution" for us.
I was going to give this a like, but then realized like was the wrong thing. I'm saddened but not surprised. It feels like Pajibans are in a bubble and don't realize how seriously many people are taking this issue. This issue matters in a big way. I'm going to vote Harris, obviously, because even if I am a progressive, I know I have to vote Dem no matter what (and I was never a Bernie Bro). (heck, our team even did a lot of work on behalf of the Biden/Harris admin on COVID and health/vaccine equity. so I don't disengage because Dems are not as left as I'd like.) I'm not out here arguing for a unicorn ticket, a purity ticket...I'm a realist. I'm actually excited about Harris to be honest. But I am sounding the alarm on the importance of Gaza!
I am not at all surprised to hear this news about your canvassing experience. I think Pajibans don't realize the shock people are feeling at the slaughter in Palestine, and at the fact that their tax dollars support it.
Yes, it is truly horrific, and those turning a blind eye are supporting mass murder and the complete eradication of the Palestinian people, their culture and infrastructure. It is unbearable and insane that even one penny of US money goes to support these monsters. So, yeah, Shapiro would be an obscene choice and deal breaker for those willing to see the truth and who still know what compassion means.
Are they voting for Trump, voting 3rd party? Sitting out? In a country as broad and diverse as this I'll never understand how anyone, especially at this time can be a one issue voter.
As a progressive, I want to see Democrats not only take over, but rule for a decade, minimum.
Then, I'll get mad they aren't "Progressive enough."
They have never really had time to do anything in my lifetime, because the fucking GOP always gets in and fouls everything up.
That's always been my problem with the online left. They get mad the Dems aren't progressive enough and we don't have universal healthcare RIGHT NOW. Here's the thing: The Dems need to be in power for more than 2-4 years to make that happen. They are open to it, as is the majority of voters. The GOP is absolutely not open to it. The online left seems to think bureaucracy is or can be fast. It's like anything: You can have it done well, fast, or cheaply...But never all three.
I'm both incredibly enthusiastic about voting for Harris and a 'ham sandwich over Trump/Vance' when it comes to whoever she picks as VP. And frankly I can't and really don't want to understand anyone who isn't. But I would like it not to be Shapiro because reasonable pieces like this go in one eye and out the other with purity voters and I would simply like to avoid any kind of intramural fighting for the next ninety days.
Of course I am for the ham sandwich, all day, every day. We Dems love fighting with each other and I totally get the weariness of it.
I think I grew at least 8 totally white hairs in the two weeks from the debate to Biden dropping out. I was super doubtful the party would gather around Kamala, but the momentum and excitement feels real.
I am team Ham sandwich, but now I am also super excited to be all in for Kamala, let’s gooo!
Isn’t there a sexual harassment case attached to one of his aides? That might also hurt him. Unless the “online left” are the only ones that care about sexual harassment.
I just want to understand something: I've been hearing more about people saying Israel "doesnt have a right to exist". So, if a country doesnt exist, where do all the people go? How does that work? Isn't the situation we have now a result of that kind of thinking? Why would more of it be better? Because saying any country or people doesnt have the right to exist is advocating genocide. That doesnt mean a country gets to exist at the expense of other people's lives but eradicating a country and forceably removing millions of Jews...well, that kinda has a bad history to put it mildly. And now some people on the left dont like Shapiro because they believe the fact he's Jewish makes him pro-genocide? I feel like I'm taking crazy pills because this was the kind of stuff far right people would say. WTF is going on?
This isn't because I'm vexed with you, my crow-loving pal, but the stubborn human demand we attach people to places and who and who is not entitled to the land.
We are about to see this attachment in humanity's psyche either kill us all or die itself as we face existential global climate change.
Something that frustrates me about leftist rhetoric regarding Israel is how the religious significance of the land to Jews is dismissed as a bunch of fairy-tale hokum, but if we protest a pipeline planned for land that is sacred to Native Americans, then the religious significance of the land is inviolable. Weird.
I think it has to do with the vastly different position in the world today of Jews as compared to Native Americans, as well as the fact that Palestine has always been inhabited by a variety of peoples.
I think, as Grosser Roskow put it a bit above, that nation states and "national self determination " are a thing of the past. There's a growing body of literature on this.
We're not there yet. Sheer environmental physics will end it for us. I'm not well versed on the predictive models, but I'm almost certain the Middle East is going to be one of the first places outside of the Equatorials that'll be to hot to live.
This is new to me. Could you give me a very basic couple of sentences about the concept? It seems more like we will cling to these concepts to the bitter end in the face of scarcity and uncertainty.
friend i 100 % agree with you about that. climate change will cause, is causing such a massive migration that countries, boundaries and cultural identity will be put through the ringer. It will be horrible. The middle east, and many many other places obviously are in danger of becoming uninhabitable. i fear for all of us. i hope against hope that humanity will pull together and see ourselves in each other instead of tearing us all apart.
It's not at all that people think he's pro-genocide because he's Jewish. There are huge numbers of jews who are fighting against support of Israeli genocide; they are in fact leading the charge --check out Jewish Voice for Peace and If Not Now (among many others).
The "right to exist" trope is thrown out by zionists to distract from what Zionism and Israel have in fact done to Palestinians.
I personally think that a secular democratic state in historical Palestine is the only really pragmatic, as well as moral, solution. The 2-state issue is unworkable due to Israeli settler intransigence and the (purposely) non-contiguous areas Palestinians are currently stuck in. But saying you're for a "2-state solution " gives you liberal cover. [ETA: not you personally obviously, but people in general] This stuff is easily researched online.
Regarding Jews being forced out (no one worries about the Palestinians forced out): around 500,000 Israelis have left Israel to date, there is no immigration, and Israelis are buying lots of property in Athens, Cyprus, Portugal and other locations.
Well shit. Substack ate the rest of my comment. Which was that Israelis are leaving Israel in droves, and buying property in Athens, Cyprus, and other places in Europe.
I worry about Shapiro, mostly because I worry about potential backlash from the youth (should they ever vote) and progressives. I am a progressive Jewish woman and I’ve had so many feelings about the war in Gaza, mostly sadness, disgust, and then anger.
But a lot of people just seem genuinely angry at Jews. I had to change my hair stylist because she became angry when I mentioned I had been to Israel. It was an intense haircut experience.
As a West-Coaster I’m not really familiar with Shapiro, but he has an off-putting, smug bully vibe to me. When news about the sexual harassment settlement came out, I misread the blurb and thought he was the offender. I thought, “well that sucks, but I’m not really surprised.”
I get the idea that having someone demonstratively more moderate than Kamala is a really good idea. This guy though, I don’t know.
Sorry to hear about your intense haircut experience! Having no idea what she said, of course, I would just guess that it might come from genuine upset at the horrors in Gaza, a belief that ALL Jews support it, and offense at the way dishonest allegations of antisemitism are being thrown around by the ADL, et al,... and the likes of Shapiro. Many people do not realize that huge numbers of Jews do not support Israel,, or at the least are very upset by the slaughter in Gaza and the West Bank.
The only calculus for Harris should be “does my pick help me win the election?” Not what leftists think. Not what pundits think. What will give you the best path to 270 because that’s all that matters.
Leftists will get over it, or they won’t. The election will come down to independents in swing states. Shapiro helps with that a lot. I don’t care if she picks someone else - there are no bad picks tbh - but caring what the online left thinks is pointless.
People talk about the "online left" as if it's a real thing. Leftists are out there doing political work - which anyone on Pajiba would know, if they got off the internet.
My family are all Pennsylvanians. Here is our theory:
There’s so much that is pointing to Shapiro—to a strange extent, if they want to keep this secret. Especially the way the rally is set for Philadelphia.
And by all accounts, all the candidates have cleared their schedules in order to be interviewed this weekend. (would they really go to those lengths if they are hearing the same rumors that the decision has been made?.)
what if Shapiro has already been ruled out and the Harris campaign is doing this on purpose to keep the Republicans on the back foot? It doesn’t hurt him to be seen as a front runner, to have people talking about him. And he is politically savvy enough to reap the benefits of just the chatter, even without the candidacy. (My sister worked in his prior office and really likes him, but she said he is ambitious and she isn’t sure he would want to play the role of helpmate for four years.)
The Republicans were so ridiculously surprised by the pivot from Biden to Harris and weren’t ready for it. Maybe this is an attempt to do that again.
That’s really interesting!! I like a lot about Walz, but one of the things I like the most is that it seems like he would be really excited to be Kamala’s VP.
Yes! In the end, I want her to have good vibes and great energy with whomever she picks. David Plotz (formerly of Slate) has a theory that the candidate who looks like they’re having the most fun is the one winning the campaign. I want Harris to have fun with someone. And, barring an atrocious pick, the other stuff will even out.
Call me a simpleton, but my worry with him as the VP pick is plain old antisemitism, a thing which is so sneaky that most non-Jewish people don’t even recognize it as such even when it’s blatant. I’d be worried even if this wasn’t a year in which antisemitism was at high levels—people are antisemitic and sexist and racist. Why give them a ticket that invites all three?
It’s simple electability that concerns me. Why not pick the whitest, straightest, most Christian man in the Democratic Party? I know it’s stupid, but it’s safe. The stakes are high and we’re already gambling on a non-incumbent president for our candidate.
I'm onboard with Tim Walz, who radiates Midwestern dad vibes but has an impressively progressive record and has gotten lots of positive attention from the left on social media.
I think Shapiro, however, would be a mistake. I've seen lazy rehashing of "Kamala is a cop" in leftist spaces online, and people strongly associating Harris with their "Genocide Joe" perception of Biden. Shapiro fails the left's purity tests for a number of reasons, and he's certainly prone to antisemitism from the worst of bad-faith protests against the Israel-Hamas war. It would be a matter of gambling winning votes in Pennsylvania against losing votes nationally among young people.
I think you are soft pedaling what "online progressives" have against Shapiro, and I'm assuming you are considering union and organized labor amongst that group that aren't happy with his voucher nonsense.
So, ignoring the immorality of asking if a state engaged in genocide as the right to exist, Shapiro doesn't think businesses should divest from Israel. He's critical of students protesting Israel. Even if it isn't a drag, he isn't as strong an addition as people think.
"The issue with Shapiro continues to be Israel. This is actually not a big issue with the broader electorate, and polls have repeatedly shown that it's not even a priority for younger voters."
This is untrue. It's mostly "moderate" Democrat wish-thinking. Trying to minimize the American public's horror over Gaza by ascribing it to only the "online left" or only "the youth vote" is a subterfuge. Shapiro is a gung-ho Zionist who piled on to the effort to fire the president of UPenn, arrest demonstrating students (calling them KKK) and smearing all and sundry with dishonest allegations of antisemitism. He's a McCarthyite and a hawk on supporting Israel with more US weapons and aid.
Apparently Kamala is doing too well on her own and democrats are allergic to succesd. If the dems insist on shooting themselves in the foot by picking him and putting Israel back in the spotlight im going to lose it. Its like they want to piss off the kids and make them stay home. Pick the fucking astronaut and you will coast to victory. Fuck shapiro and the moderate dems in general, they had their time, now they need to get the fuck out of the way for progressives from the next generation.
There's a podcast called Three Rural White Guys, and it's put out by 3 (natch) SE Iowa progressives. Their consensus was that if the Democrats are serious about putting a dent in the Confederate Weirdos penetration into rural areas, Harris has to pick Walz. Otherwise, the D's must pursue their previous campaign strategy of running up the populous voting areas and hope they can overwhelm the rurally-dominated EC states. It's simply just not economical to campaign in rural areas without a credible rural voice.
I'm going to take the "don't read too much into it" to heart that the VP pick will be introduced at the Philly rally on Tuesday (though like I said in yesterday's Psubstack, it feels mean in an elementary school way to introduce someone else on Shapiro's home turf). I do think that Shapiro provides the republicans with a lot of ammunition and could suppress the youth vote. I haven't seen Kelly try to clean up his labor stance and personally believe that's a big issue given that it's completely contrary to the Biden-Harris administration. I don't know, I like Tim Waltz but still think it could be Andy Beshear.
My southeastern Pennsylvanian roots are making me defensive about all this “but why else Philly?!” chatter. (Not from you. More from others.) Because it’s a major city! In a swing state! close to Washington! Ha.
I say downthread that I could see Shapiro totally being on board with this chatter about him being VP even if he knows he’s not getting it. It doesn’t hurt him at all for people to talk about how well-liked he is in PA…I’m leaning into the “he is a decoy who is fine with the attention” theory.
And i think he will make the most of a rally in his backyard.
Ultimately, Trump is correct that VP pick is not the be all end all of a campaign (though it's obvious to anyone who watched that interview that his narcissism was speaking, not any insight) so all we need is for this not to fuck the momentum. I don't think any of the VP options will do that, though I remain team Walz.
Pennsylvania has fallen in line the least of any state since Harris took over though. There are worse moves than to lock it up.
I do agree on Tim Walz. From what I know about him he'd be my first pick. I have friends who are pretty sure that it will be Kelly. I could live with either of them. Not Shapiro though.
If my dad were on the fence about voting for Harris due mainly to ingrained sexism, I guarantee Walz would win him over. He's like someone my dad would go hunting or fishing with, but who also stands up for trans kids. I hope he's the pick.
FWIW since seeing your comment I’ve used this quote—“hunting, fishing…stands up for trans kids”—a lot of time with people. And I’ve attributed it to you, Pajiba Corey! Thanks for it!
I get why locking up Pennsylvania is attractive, but I think the bigger threat to the Harris campaign is killing its momentum.
Of the VP candidates in contention, Shapiro could have the largest chilling effect.
I'm further to the left of Harris on most things, but to be honest, the enthusiasm of/for her campaign and sense of hope has been the best thing to happen to my mental health in years, and I think a lot of folks feel that way. If she picked Shapiro, it would kill momentum for ME, and that's saying a lot considering I'm Jewish and would otherwise love if she picked a Jewish running mate.
Agreed and he won’t win PA for her…she can do it herself. No one in PA is going to vote for bc she chose him vs someone else. I’m in PA and he’s not super popular. I’ve said this before but Dems only win PA if you get unlikely voters to vote in Philly…the rest of the rest is primarily Republicans and they don’t like Shapiro. Bad choice imo
as a Jew and PA resident, I agree with you. The right will hammer him on the cover up of his aid's sexual harassment because irony & hypocrisy have no effect on them and this will stick, especially with women; they will remind the left of his stance on school vouchers (though he knows that moderates do not want tax dollars to help rich people pay for private schools or to go to religious schools and he not only vetoed a proposal, he hasn't brought it up again). The right will also find a way to hammer on his "volunteer service with the IDF" which wasn't him serving, it was a school service project on kibbutzes and an army base (he went to Akiba which is a Jewish day school in the Philly burbs) and his skepticism in an op/ed about the Oslo Accords (his language volunteering with the Israeli army implies military service). Most Diaspora Jews, even those of us who are hopeful and have pushed for Israel to give back the West Bank and make other concessions, are skeptical that concessions and a 2-state solution will lead to peace. We want Israel to try but in our hearts most of us think that anything less than the destruction of Israel and eradication of Jews from the Middle East will placate Hamas and Hezbollah. Right now, we're also acutely aware that Netanyahu is not only the co-architect (with Hamas) of the genocide of Palestinians but will also be the reason enough on the left will happily support the right wingers when it comes to a "final solution" for us.
I was going to give this a like, but then realized like was the wrong thing. I'm saddened but not surprised. It feels like Pajibans are in a bubble and don't realize how seriously many people are taking this issue. This issue matters in a big way. I'm going to vote Harris, obviously, because even if I am a progressive, I know I have to vote Dem no matter what (and I was never a Bernie Bro). (heck, our team even did a lot of work on behalf of the Biden/Harris admin on COVID and health/vaccine equity. so I don't disengage because Dems are not as left as I'd like.) I'm not out here arguing for a unicorn ticket, a purity ticket...I'm a realist. I'm actually excited about Harris to be honest. But I am sounding the alarm on the importance of Gaza!
I am not at all surprised to hear this news about your canvassing experience. I think Pajibans don't realize the shock people are feeling at the slaughter in Palestine, and at the fact that their tax dollars support it.
Yes, it is truly horrific, and those turning a blind eye are supporting mass murder and the complete eradication of the Palestinian people, their culture and infrastructure. It is unbearable and insane that even one penny of US money goes to support these monsters. So, yeah, Shapiro would be an obscene choice and deal breaker for those willing to see the truth and who still know what compassion means.
Are they voting for Trump, voting 3rd party? Sitting out? In a country as broad and diverse as this I'll never understand how anyone, especially at this time can be a one issue voter.
As a progressive, I want to see Democrats not only take over, but rule for a decade, minimum.
Then, I'll get mad they aren't "Progressive enough."
They have never really had time to do anything in my lifetime, because the fucking GOP always gets in and fouls everything up.
That's always been my problem with the online left. They get mad the Dems aren't progressive enough and we don't have universal healthcare RIGHT NOW. Here's the thing: The Dems need to be in power for more than 2-4 years to make that happen. They are open to it, as is the majority of voters. The GOP is absolutely not open to it. The online left seems to think bureaucracy is or can be fast. It's like anything: You can have it done well, fast, or cheaply...But never all three.
This is why I call myself a pragmatic progressive or progressive pragmatist, depending on which I want to prioritize at the moment.
Sounds like a couple of leftist youtubers that I've since blocked.
I totally agree.
I'm both incredibly enthusiastic about voting for Harris and a 'ham sandwich over Trump/Vance' when it comes to whoever she picks as VP. And frankly I can't and really don't want to understand anyone who isn't. But I would like it not to be Shapiro because reasonable pieces like this go in one eye and out the other with purity voters and I would simply like to avoid any kind of intramural fighting for the next ninety days.
I agree with you on avoiding aggro for the next 90 days, but I don't think this is a "reasonable " piece. I think it's an inaccurate one.
Of course I am for the ham sandwich, all day, every day. We Dems love fighting with each other and I totally get the weariness of it.
I think I grew at least 8 totally white hairs in the two weeks from the debate to Biden dropping out. I was super doubtful the party would gather around Kamala, but the momentum and excitement feels real.
I am team Ham sandwich, but now I am also super excited to be all in for Kamala, let’s gooo!
Only 8??
I mean, at least!! I probably caused a few as well. 😅
Good work!
TEAM HAM SANDWICH
Isn’t there a sexual harassment case attached to one of his aides? That might also hurt him. Unless the “online left” are the only ones that care about sexual harassment.
The online left do not exist in the corporeal sense, and therefore cannot fathom sexual harassment /s
I just want to understand something: I've been hearing more about people saying Israel "doesnt have a right to exist". So, if a country doesnt exist, where do all the people go? How does that work? Isn't the situation we have now a result of that kind of thinking? Why would more of it be better? Because saying any country or people doesnt have the right to exist is advocating genocide. That doesnt mean a country gets to exist at the expense of other people's lives but eradicating a country and forceably removing millions of Jews...well, that kinda has a bad history to put it mildly. And now some people on the left dont like Shapiro because they believe the fact he's Jewish makes him pro-genocide? I feel like I'm taking crazy pills because this was the kind of stuff far right people would say. WTF is going on?
*takes a breath*
This isn't because I'm vexed with you, my crow-loving pal, but the stubborn human demand we attach people to places and who and who is not entitled to the land.
We are about to see this attachment in humanity's psyche either kill us all or die itself as we face existential global climate change.
Something that frustrates me about leftist rhetoric regarding Israel is how the religious significance of the land to Jews is dismissed as a bunch of fairy-tale hokum, but if we protest a pipeline planned for land that is sacred to Native Americans, then the religious significance of the land is inviolable. Weird.
I think it has to do with the vastly different position in the world today of Jews as compared to Native Americans, as well as the fact that Palestine has always been inhabited by a variety of peoples.
Well put. And Palestinians deserve the same right of self determination as Israelis.
I think, as Grosser Roskow put it a bit above, that nation states and "national self determination " are a thing of the past. There's a growing body of literature on this.
We're not there yet. Sheer environmental physics will end it for us. I'm not well versed on the predictive models, but I'm almost certain the Middle East is going to be one of the first places outside of the Equatorials that'll be to hot to live.
This is new to me. Could you give me a very basic couple of sentences about the concept? It seems more like we will cling to these concepts to the bitter end in the face of scarcity and uncertainty.
friend i 100 % agree with you about that. climate change will cause, is causing such a massive migration that countries, boundaries and cultural identity will be put through the ringer. It will be horrible. The middle east, and many many other places obviously are in danger of becoming uninhabitable. i fear for all of us. i hope against hope that humanity will pull together and see ourselves in each other instead of tearing us all apart.
It's not at all that people think he's pro-genocide because he's Jewish. There are huge numbers of jews who are fighting against support of Israeli genocide; they are in fact leading the charge --check out Jewish Voice for Peace and If Not Now (among many others).
The "right to exist" trope is thrown out by zionists to distract from what Zionism and Israel have in fact done to Palestinians.
I personally think that a secular democratic state in historical Palestine is the only really pragmatic, as well as moral, solution. The 2-state issue is unworkable due to Israeli settler intransigence and the (purposely) non-contiguous areas Palestinians are currently stuck in. But saying you're for a "2-state solution " gives you liberal cover. [ETA: not you personally obviously, but people in general] This stuff is easily researched online.
Regarding Jews being forced out (no one worries about the Palestinians forced out): around 500,000 Israelis have left Israel to date, there is no immigration, and Israelis are buying lots of property in Athens, Cyprus, Portugal and other locations.
Well shit. Substack ate the rest of my comment. Which was that Israelis are leaving Israel in droves, and buying property in Athens, Cyprus, and other places in Europe.
I worry about Shapiro, mostly because I worry about potential backlash from the youth (should they ever vote) and progressives. I am a progressive Jewish woman and I’ve had so many feelings about the war in Gaza, mostly sadness, disgust, and then anger.
But a lot of people just seem genuinely angry at Jews. I had to change my hair stylist because she became angry when I mentioned I had been to Israel. It was an intense haircut experience.
As a West-Coaster I’m not really familiar with Shapiro, but he has an off-putting, smug bully vibe to me. When news about the sexual harassment settlement came out, I misread the blurb and thought he was the offender. I thought, “well that sucks, but I’m not really surprised.”
I get the idea that having someone demonstratively more moderate than Kamala is a really good idea. This guy though, I don’t know.
Sorry to hear about your intense haircut experience! Having no idea what she said, of course, I would just guess that it might come from genuine upset at the horrors in Gaza, a belief that ALL Jews support it, and offense at the way dishonest allegations of antisemitism are being thrown around by the ADL, et al,... and the likes of Shapiro. Many people do not realize that huge numbers of Jews do not support Israel,, or at the least are very upset by the slaughter in Gaza and the West Bank.
Replying to myself: posting on Substack, especially on my phone, is a royal pain in the butt.
I am spending too much time figuring it out when I should be working! Haha
Even a retiree like me is spending too much time on it!
The only calculus for Harris should be “does my pick help me win the election?” Not what leftists think. Not what pundits think. What will give you the best path to 270 because that’s all that matters.
Leftists will get over it, or they won’t. The election will come down to independents in swing states. Shapiro helps with that a lot. I don’t care if she picks someone else - there are no bad picks tbh - but caring what the online left thinks is pointless.
“Do I want to work with this person for the next 4-8 years?” also needs to be considered.
People talk about the "online left" as if it's a real thing. Leftists are out there doing political work - which anyone on Pajiba would know, if they got off the internet.
My family are all Pennsylvanians. Here is our theory:
There’s so much that is pointing to Shapiro—to a strange extent, if they want to keep this secret. Especially the way the rally is set for Philadelphia.
And by all accounts, all the candidates have cleared their schedules in order to be interviewed this weekend. (would they really go to those lengths if they are hearing the same rumors that the decision has been made?.)
what if Shapiro has already been ruled out and the Harris campaign is doing this on purpose to keep the Republicans on the back foot? It doesn’t hurt him to be seen as a front runner, to have people talking about him. And he is politically savvy enough to reap the benefits of just the chatter, even without the candidacy. (My sister worked in his prior office and really likes him, but she said he is ambitious and she isn’t sure he would want to play the role of helpmate for four years.)
The Republicans were so ridiculously surprised by the pivot from Biden to Harris and weren’t ready for it. Maybe this is an attempt to do that again.
That’s really interesting!! I like a lot about Walz, but one of the things I like the most is that it seems like he would be really excited to be Kamala’s VP.
Yes! In the end, I want her to have good vibes and great energy with whomever she picks. David Plotz (formerly of Slate) has a theory that the candidate who looks like they’re having the most fun is the one winning the campaign. I want Harris to have fun with someone. And, barring an atrocious pick, the other stuff will even out.
Call me a simpleton, but my worry with him as the VP pick is plain old antisemitism, a thing which is so sneaky that most non-Jewish people don’t even recognize it as such even when it’s blatant. I’d be worried even if this wasn’t a year in which antisemitism was at high levels—people are antisemitic and sexist and racist. Why give them a ticket that invites all three?
It’s simple electability that concerns me. Why not pick the whitest, straightest, most Christian man in the Democratic Party? I know it’s stupid, but it’s safe. The stakes are high and we’re already gambling on a non-incumbent president for our candidate.
I'm onboard with Tim Walz, who radiates Midwestern dad vibes but has an impressively progressive record and has gotten lots of positive attention from the left on social media.
I think Shapiro, however, would be a mistake. I've seen lazy rehashing of "Kamala is a cop" in leftist spaces online, and people strongly associating Harris with their "Genocide Joe" perception of Biden. Shapiro fails the left's purity tests for a number of reasons, and he's certainly prone to antisemitism from the worst of bad-faith protests against the Israel-Hamas war. It would be a matter of gambling winning votes in Pennsylvania against losing votes nationally among young people.
I think you are soft pedaling what "online progressives" have against Shapiro, and I'm assuming you are considering union and organized labor amongst that group that aren't happy with his voucher nonsense.
So, ignoring the immorality of asking if a state engaged in genocide as the right to exist, Shapiro doesn't think businesses should divest from Israel. He's critical of students protesting Israel. Even if it isn't a drag, he isn't as strong an addition as people think.
As you say, the school voucher and especially labor and union support issues are extremely important.
"The issue with Shapiro continues to be Israel. This is actually not a big issue with the broader electorate, and polls have repeatedly shown that it's not even a priority for younger voters."
This is untrue. It's mostly "moderate" Democrat wish-thinking. Trying to minimize the American public's horror over Gaza by ascribing it to only the "online left" or only "the youth vote" is a subterfuge. Shapiro is a gung-ho Zionist who piled on to the effort to fire the president of UPenn, arrest demonstrating students (calling them KKK) and smearing all and sundry with dishonest allegations of antisemitism. He's a McCarthyite and a hawk on supporting Israel with more US weapons and aid.
Apparently Kamala is doing too well on her own and democrats are allergic to succesd. If the dems insist on shooting themselves in the foot by picking him and putting Israel back in the spotlight im going to lose it. Its like they want to piss off the kids and make them stay home. Pick the fucking astronaut and you will coast to victory. Fuck shapiro and the moderate dems in general, they had their time, now they need to get the fuck out of the way for progressives from the next generation.
I'm a moderate(ish) Dem and I think Shapiro is the wrong choice. But thanks for the best wishes for my sex life.
Yes!
There's a podcast called Three Rural White Guys, and it's put out by 3 (natch) SE Iowa progressives. Their consensus was that if the Democrats are serious about putting a dent in the Confederate Weirdos penetration into rural areas, Harris has to pick Walz. Otherwise, the D's must pursue their previous campaign strategy of running up the populous voting areas and hope they can overwhelm the rurally-dominated EC states. It's simply just not economical to campaign in rural areas without a credible rural voice.
I'm going to take the "don't read too much into it" to heart that the VP pick will be introduced at the Philly rally on Tuesday (though like I said in yesterday's Psubstack, it feels mean in an elementary school way to introduce someone else on Shapiro's home turf). I do think that Shapiro provides the republicans with a lot of ammunition and could suppress the youth vote. I haven't seen Kelly try to clean up his labor stance and personally believe that's a big issue given that it's completely contrary to the Biden-Harris administration. I don't know, I like Tim Waltz but still think it could be Andy Beshear.
My southeastern Pennsylvanian roots are making me defensive about all this “but why else Philly?!” chatter. (Not from you. More from others.) Because it’s a major city! In a swing state! close to Washington! Ha.
I say downthread that I could see Shapiro totally being on board with this chatter about him being VP even if he knows he’s not getting it. It doesn’t hurt him at all for people to talk about how well-liked he is in PA…I’m leaning into the “he is a decoy who is fine with the attention” theory.
And i think he will make the most of a rally in his backyard.
I hadn't thought of it that way. I could TOTALLY see him being onboard with being a decoy.
Well Philly is pretty much the country's birthplace so it's not a bad place to officially kick off her campaign.
Ultimately, Trump is correct that VP pick is not the be all end all of a campaign (though it's obvious to anyone who watched that interview that his narcissism was speaking, not any insight) so all we need is for this not to fuck the momentum. I don't think any of the VP options will do that, though I remain team Walz.
Pennsylvania has fallen in line the least of any state since Harris took over though. There are worse moves than to lock it up.
I do agree on Tim Walz. From what I know about him he'd be my first pick. I have friends who are pretty sure that it will be Kelly. I could live with either of them. Not Shapiro though.
If my dad were on the fence about voting for Harris due mainly to ingrained sexism, I guarantee Walz would win him over. He's like someone my dad would go hunting or fishing with, but who also stands up for trans kids. I hope he's the pick.
FWIW since seeing your comment I’ve used this quote—“hunting, fishing…stands up for trans kids”—a lot of time with people. And I’ve attributed it to you, Pajiba Corey! Thanks for it!