Vice President Kamala Harris’ decision to tap Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as running mate over Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, the only Jewish candidate under consideration, sparked immediate speculation that Keystone State’s governor was cast aside because of his pro-Israel politics.
“This is a person who listened to the Hamas wing of her own party in selecting a nominee,” former President Donald Trump’s running mate, Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, told reporters in reaction to the pick, according to a CBS News report.
The comment comes amid heavy backlash to the selection of Walz over Shapiro in some corners, with many speculating that the pick was made to appease the far-left wing of the Democratic Party that some see as hostile to Israel.
“Those in the overly online left who are attacking Josh Shapiro’s pro-Israel positions in a different way than they are attacking non-Jewish veep contenders’ positions, they’re just telling on themselves,” Rep. Jake Auchincloss, D-Mass., told CNN Monday.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz speaks during a news conference at the Department of Revenue building, Jan. 26, 2021, in St. Paul, Minn. Gov (Anthony Souffle/Star Tribune via AP, File) (AP)
“There is a strong undercurrent of antisemitism to that,” he continued. “It’s unacceptable. Every contender’s positions on all policy issues, their track records in elected office, all of that is fair game. That is totally open to be subjected to interrogation and to questioning by the Harris team, by observers, but holding him to a different standard because of his religion just simply isn’t who we are in the Democratic Party.”
The defense of Shapiro comes as some supporters of Israel have become increasingly worried in recent months that Harris has started to carve out a position different from President Biden on support for the Jewish State, claiming the vice president has begun to take a more sympathetic view toward the faction of the Democratic Party that has showed support for Palestinians amid Israel’s invasion of Gaza.
While Harris has continued to express that Israel has a right to defend itself and has repeatedly condemned the October terrorist attacks against the Jewish State, she did become the first administration official to call for an “immediate cease-fire” in Gaza.
Harris also vowed “not to be silent” about the suffering of Gazans ahead of a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last month, remarks some took as a continued signal of a shifting position from the vice president.
Walz has taken a similar approach to Harris, at times expressing support for Israel while also expressing sympathy for the plight of Gazans.
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“You can hold competing things: That Israel has the right to defend itself, and the atrocities of October 7 are unacceptable, but Palestinian civilians being caught in this … has got to end,” Walz said during an appearance on Minnesota Public Radio in March, according to a report from Al Jazeera.
Walz has also consistently argued that Israel has a right to exist, telling the Jewish Community Relations Council earlier this year that the “ability of Jewish people to self-determine themselves is foundational.”
“The failure to recognize the state of Israel is taking away that self-determination. So it is anti-Semitic,” he said.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz arrives to speak at a press conference regarding new gun legislation at City Hall on August 1, 2024 in Bloomington, Minnesota. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)
The Minnesota governor was quick to condemn the October 7 terrorist attack on Israel, arguing those that carried out the attack showed “an absolute lack of humanity.”
“That’s not a geopolitical discussion. That’s murder,” Walz said, according to a Times of Israel report.
He also urged members of his own party to take the concerns of Jewish students seriously amid a wave of anti-Israel demonstrations on American college campuses in the spring.
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“I think when Jewish students are telling us they feel unsafe in that, we need to believe them, and I do believe them,” Walz said during a PBS appearance. “Creating a space where political dissent or political rallying can happen is one thing. Intimidation is another.“
Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (Glen Stubbe/Star Tribune via Getty Images)
According to a USA Today report, Walz also expressed support for Israel while serving in Congress between 2007 ad 2019, voting with Israel multiple times, including a vote to condemn the United Nations resolution that declared Israeli settlements on the West Bank illegal.
But Walz also showed that his support for Israel is not unlimited, warning the country about those same settlements during a diplomatic tour through the Middle East in 2009, arguing that they were damaging prospects for peace.
Like Harris, the Minnesota governor called for a cease-fire to the conflict in March. That same month, he praised Democrats who voted uncommitted during the state’s primary, following a movement that started in Michigan to protest the Biden administration’s handling of the conflict in Gaza.