politics
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October 22, 2024
In her town hall with Liz Cheney, Kamala Harris is making no concessions in favor of Cheney, while Cheney has voiced her opposition. Dobbs decision. What’s not to like?
Vice President Kamala Harris stands with former Congresswoman Liz Cheney in Brookfield, Wisconsin, at City Hall.
(Scott Olson/Getty Images)
Kamala Harris and Liz Cheney’s unlikely “Blue Wall” tour through three suburban counties in Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin on Monday turned heads right and left. .
“Kamala Harris City Hall and Liz Cheney will blow up on the launch pad,” a loud bang rang out. red state heading. On social media, progressives and other critics of America’s support for Israel’s relentless assault on Gaza expressed horror at seeing Harris campaigning with “hawkish” Cheney. I felt it.
“Michigan: A key battleground state and the highest concentration of Arab Americans in the nation. Harris: Campaign with Liz Cheney!” tweeted the hillNile Stanage.
My friend and colleague John Nichols writes: nation“If Harris wants to win Wisconsin, she should stop talking about Cheney and playing with the Cheneys and start talking about the support she received from Barack Obama.”
I would argue that Mr. Harris can, has done, and will do both. In fact, vice presidential candidate Tim Walz is scheduled to appear in Madison with President Obama on Tuesday. Harris and Obama will then appear in Detroit, introduced by Eminem. The two are scheduled to visit Georgia on Thursday. And Michelle Obama is scheduled to join Harris in Michigan on Saturday. I hope that Mr. Harris and Mr. Obama will be in Milwaukee by November 5th.
Importantly, Ms. Harris is not known to have made any policy concessions to win Ms. Cheney’s support. In fact, the only big news from City Hall was when Ms. Cheney, who had been staunchly opposed to abortion since the Supreme Court overturned it, agreed with Ms. Harris’ argument. Roe vs. WadeStates go too far in banning and restricting abortions that harm women.
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“I think there are a lot of us across the country who have been pro-life and have been watching what’s been going on in their states since the war. Dobbs And we’ve seen state legislatures enact laws that result in women not getting the care they need,” she said. “This is not a bipartisan issue,” Cheney continued. “In states like Texas, for example, attorneys general are suing to get access to women’s medical records. That’s not sustainable for our country, and it has to change.”
Although Cheney did not say what policy changes she would support, her remarks were…remarkable. she welcomed Dobbs When this decision was made in June 2022, it welcomed the return of the matter to the states. The former Wyoming congressman’s change in position drew immediate criticism from the right, but Cheney doubled down on the tour’s third stop, Waukesha County. “It’s critical that the federal government do its part and find ways to protect women from negative impacts.”These are some of the worst harms we’re seeing. ” Clearly, she no longer believes the state should be in control of this issue.
national reviewCharles CW Cook had a stroke: “I’m sorry, but if supporting/opposing a politician changes your mind about abortion, school choice, taxes, etc., then you have completely explained why we have politicians and what their role is.” , tragically, decisively mistaken,” Cook tweeted, noting that he had previously supported legislation declaring that life begins “at the moment of conception.”
Asked repeatedly if other prominent Never Trump Republicans (looking at you, Mitt Romney) might jump off the fence and endorse Harris, Cheney said yes, but… “There are certainly a lot of Republicans who say, ‘I can’t do this,'” he added. public. ‘They’re worried about a lot of things, including violence, but they’ll do the right thing. And I want to remind people that if you’re at all worried, you don’t have to say anything to anyone if you vote your conscience. ” She predicted that millions of Republicans would do just that.
Otherwise, City Hall was notable primarily for the warmth between the two women. Cheney, who once derided Harris as a “radical liberal,” now describes her as a man of “honest heart,” “character” and “courage.” Harris similarly praised Cheney’s courageous actions in opposing and supporting Trump. The vice president, who opposed the Iraq war, agrees with Cheney on supporting Ukraine and maintaining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) alliance, which President Trump opposes. “If Trump were president, Vladimir Putin would be in Kiev by now,” Harris said in Waukesha County.
The tragedy of Gaza came to light when a member of the audience shouted, “What happened to Gaza?” He was then reportedly kicked out of the room. Critics say the town hall questioners were pre-vetted and that at least some had already indicated they intended to vote for Harris, although they were described as “decisive” voters. It is pointed out that.
The screened questions didn’t bother me much (this happens at most presidential town halls). Given liberals’ and progressives’ disdain for Cheney, these events were already risky enough for Harris. Personally, I appreciated the events, especially the last one in Waukesha County. This traditionally conservative “white flight” county gave one-third of its votes to Democratic, racist Alabama Governor George Wallace in 1964. This was the launching pad for former Republican Governor Scott Walker’s political career (he started as Waukesha County Executive). But on Monday, broadcaster Charlie Sykes, who is widely credited with helping launch Walker, endorsed Harris and moderated the Cheney-Harris talks there. “Welcome to the production of” strange couple” Sykes told the crowd.
The funniest moment of the day came after a question from host Maria Shriver in Royal Oak, Michigan. “Everyone I talk to says, you know, I have to turn off the news, I can’t read anything, I’m in mediation, I’m doing yoga. I’m so anxious… I’m eating gummies. What? “I don’t eat gummies!” Harris immediately replied. Laugh out loud. It also led to a touching moment when the vice president told people not to give in to despair.
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“I say there’s no need to despair because in our democracy, the people, every individual, has the power to decide what’s going to happen, as long as we can maintain it. So let us not feel helpless, because then we have lost…the baton is now in our hands and against this country that we love. The crowd gave her a standing ovation.
Will Harris’ strategy work? All three counties voted heavily for Nikki Haley in the Republican primary, even after she withdrew from the race. Latest new york times/ In the Siena poll, conducted after Cheney and many other Republicans began supporting Harris, 9 percent of registered Republicans said they would vote for her, compared to just 5 percent in the previous poll. It was.
I hear people complaining that Monday’s events are a repeat of 2016, when Hillary Clinton spent too much time courting suburban white women and ignored her diverse urban base. I’ve seen it. But Harris doesn’t do that. Last weekend, she was in Detroit with Lizzo and Atlanta with Usher. She spoke with the UAW in Lansing on Friday. She has many more such events scheduled in the future. But on Nov. 5, abortion became the driving issue, with Cheney pushing “pro-life” women to vote for Harris as well, as abortion bans kill women around the world. During this time, he urged us to reconsider what it means to be “pro-life.” The country is important. I thought Monday was a good day.
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