On the final, and most anticipated, night of the four-day Chicago convention, Harris, 59, promised to chart a “New Way Forward” as she and Trump, 78, enter the final 11 weeks of the razor-close campaign.
After days of protests from Palestinian supporters who were disappointed at not getting a speaking spot at the convention, Harris delivered a pledge to secure Israel, bring the hostages home from Gaza and end the war in the Palestinian enclave.
“Now is the time to get a hostage deal and a ceasefire deal done,” she said to cheers. “And let me be clear, I will always stand up for Israel’s right to defend itself and I will always ensure Israel has the ability to defend itself.”
“What has happened in Gaza over the past 10 months is devastating. So many innocent lives lost, desperate hungry people fleeing for safety over and over again. The scale of suffering is heartbreaking,” she said.
“And America, we must also be steadfast in advancing our security and values abroad.”
Values? Is this where she talks about compassion and justice, and creating a safer world through peace and de-escalation in the Middle East?
“As commander in chief, I will ensure America always has the strongest, most lethal fighting force in the world.”
Oh.
I get the sense that hawkish statement is more in regards to Russia than anything. I know Iran and N. Korea are up there, but when your old arch nemesis is invading neighbors, even Dems go hawkish.
Apart from pure domestic “tough” politics, I think China/Taiwan is the actual motivator for worrying about military strength. Russia has shown itself to be barely capable of fighting its neighbor. China sounds like it actually has weapons that are able to threaten our forces, and have been saber rattling against Taiwan.
Fair. I generally try to avoid calling them an enemy since they have very little to gain from a war with the US (at least for now) yet we know they want Taiwan (and probably more) which makes them a threat and a good reason to keep a strong military.
They just aren’t as outwardly hostile since they’re still a trade partner. For instance, if somehow an alliance formed in WW3 against “the West”, my money is on them prefering neutrality, similar to India. It’s just better for their country, even if they could use it to (temporarily) snag Taiwan. They’d much rather take Taiwan as a one-off.
But yeah, you’re right though even if they aren’t part of the “axis of evil”, lol
I think everything with China is a game of chicken, but it’s a game of chicken each side wants to be well prepared for in case something goes wrong. China doesn’t want to fight the US, but if they think whatever’s happening in our politics means we wouldn’t fight them for Taiwan, they might invade assuming we won’t act. But if they misjudge and we do act, they certainly would like to have ship-killing missiles available for the fight.
Here’s her speech… https://www.instagram.com/reel/C_BOYirumo-/
I mean, did you catch the relentless series of war-hawks that came out in series before her final speech?
Yep. Not a huge fan given I remember what led to the ill advised Iraq invasion. I vote mostly on domestic policy, though, so as it stands it’s not a deal breaker (and after Ukraine I’m slightly more hawkish myself, but only slight).
This is one of those “they’re both the same” kind of arguments. They always need tempered with a call to still vote against the other guy
I’ll choose to bend over backwards here in order to assume positive intent - Harris, as VP, has almost no power in the situation currently. Biden is literally one of, if not the most, Zionist presidents in the history of the US. Biden will never stop short of giving Israel everything and more, even as Netenyahu repeatedly embarrasses him and shows himself to be a fascist head of a terror state who considers Israel beyond reproach and above international law.
Once Kamala assumes the presidency, she will be able to act on her own authority. Let’s hope that moment brings a marked turn in American support of the unfolding genocide in Gaza. And if not, we can apply pressure on the Harris admin until she changes her tune. That wouldn’t be possible at all with Trump or Biden, so at least with Harris we have some glimmer of hope for the Palestinian people.
The best candidate for the us is someone who mayhaps possibly maybe but probably still support genocide
Yup, a completely true statement and a really good reason to vote for Harris…
Because the other fucker wants to accelerate genocide and, in the American system, you get two choices.
But if your heart is pure and you vote hard enough for a third party candidate, you can stop the genocide all by yourself!
As long as you have the fifth captain planet ring, yup!
think the Germans thought this same thing at one point
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She did say that, and also that there are horrors being inflicted in Gaza. Only her whole statement gives any idea what she’s talking about.
Her speech was right on both accounts though. Hamas did unspeakably terrible things in Israel. But that in no way excuses them from the suffering they are causing to civilians in Palestine.
To be honest, I expect her to back Israel, and that these words are just a way to temporarily placate the ones calling for an end to genocide. But at least she tried to broach the complexity of the situation.
She could do more. But I’ll take this approach for now, knowing we can keep pushing in the direction of liberating the Palestinian people, over “finish the job” Trump.
Strongly agree.
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It was a pretty milquetoast acknowledgement of Israeli war crimes, without even mentioning them by name as the perpetrators. I would have hoped for at least something along the lines of:
The children of Gaza deserve better than to be trapped between a terrorist regime and an Israeli military, that, by their actions, shows that they do not value Palestinian lives as worthy of protection.
But I guess even that would have been too spicy for the pro-Israel lobby within the Democratic party. That said, I’ll take any public acknowledgement and push for a ceasefire over the current status quo. Much as I wish it were possible, I don’t think we’re ever gonna get a major figure in any political party to come out and say, for example “Israel is an deeply unjust nation that must reckon with the status of Palestinians if it wishes to become a true, legitimate democratic state.”
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Here’s her speech… https://www.instagram.com/reel/C_BOYirumo-/
Disingenuous and baiting. Thanks for showing us know who you are.
It’s reality.
Clarification on the quote (Israel), was that actually in the quote, or subtext by you?
Actually asking
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I’m not saying she isn’t exposing pro Israel opinions in general (edit as evidenced by your following quote) but it’s important to make it very very clear that you added it. Someone could copy paste your comment taking it as a true quote, which represents misinformation.
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You comment is right there, unedited. If you should have punctuated differently, just go do that.
She basically ‘both sides’ that issue, which I guess is about as good as you’re going to get from someone wanting to win. To be fair, Hamas does suck, and so does the situation in Gaza, and if you stop there (as undecided voters do) then that message makes sense.
Too bad when you dig just a bit deeper, it’s quite hard to side with Israel, both in numbers dead and historical bullshit they’ve pulled. Unfortunate I don’t think you’ll change Dem messaging unless randos in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Nevada, etc, are willing to learn more and change their stance. That’s who that language is for.
But these are people who are undecided, they’re likely the least informed people on the planet earth, and that includes people in comas.
Ever since the Biden administration redefined “ceasefire” to mean “hostage exchange pause” it’s become a meaningless term. The US needs to completely cut off arms support to Israel. That is the only ethical and moral action at this point. Anything less is abetting genocide.
So nothing different from current stance of watching Isreal trying to kill or displace everyone in Gaza plus possibly attacking everyone around them?
I’m honestly going to have to wait until the rubber actually hits the road (read: until she actually has the authority to meaningfully act and define national policy without AIPAC threatening to dump money into Trump’s wallet if she refuses to support Bibi’s agenda). I’m not being glib, or suggesting we ignore Gaza and the genocide there. All I’m saying is that I’m basically certain that there’s WAY more behind the scenes strong-arming-with-campaign-money going on here than most people are willing to admit.
All that said, if she doesn’t shift course relatively quickly once she clinches the election, my opinion on her stance on Gaza is going to change drastically.
Her speech was about increasing the war machine and never stopping support. So doubt she’ll change much but can hope. Not that hopes done much since Obama
While I do get what you’re saying on some level, I feel like you’re ignoring how much AIPAC’s threat of throwing their cash towards the fascists sucks the air out of the room and makes rational discussion of the topic extremely difficult.
Placating them only makes things worse
Yes, interpreting the world in color instead of black and white certainly makes things more complicated.
And I guess complexity and nuance are bad, from your point of view.
Let me know when they start using complexity and nuance. Cause right now they’re fully going in with aipac.
I mean, she could spring it on everyone at the last minute. Like Friday before the election, come out in support of an arms embargo. It’s all anyone would be talking about and it wouldn’t matter how much money AIPAC shoves out the door.
Of course, she won’t, because we’ll keep unconditionally arming Netanyahu as he starts war after war to stay in power. If we don’t start sending troops to protect Netanyahu’s political career.
Raising Wages and Promoting Workers’ Rights Democrats will fight to raise wages for working people and improve job quality and security, including by raising the federal minimum wage so it reaches $15 an hour by 2026. Raising the federal minimum wage, so fewer workers are forced to hold down multiple jobs to make ends meet, will significantly decrease risks of infection from COVID-19 and in the future. We know that strong American labor unions help increase wages and job standards for workers across the economy, which is why Democrats will prioritize passing the PRO Act and restoring workers’ rights, including the right to launch secondary boycotts. We will repeal so-called “right to work” laws that undermine worker power and lead to lower wages and less protection for workers across the economy, and ensure those who have been left without wage and hour protections for 14 decades—including domestic workers and farmworkers—have the same rights as other workers.
Democrats will support legislation to strengthen whistleblower and anti-retaliation protections for workers who speak for themselves or their coworkers. And we will take action to rein in anti-competitive corporate power by rewriting the rules that have undermined workers’ ability to advocate for themselves, including non-compete clauses, no-poaching agreements, and contracts that force workers into mandatory arbitration to resolve violations of employment laws.
Democrats will recognize unions with majority sign-up—via “card check” processes—and ban captive audience meetings, which employers use to bully and browbeat workers. We will hold executives personally accountable if they interfere in workers’ efforts to organize, including issuing criminal penalties for intentional obstruction. We will take action to guarantee that when workers come to the table, they are able to bargain with the employers who actually hold the power, including franchisors, and penalize companies that bargain in bad faith with their workers. Democrats will vigorously protect all private-sector workers’ right to strike without fear of coercion, interference, and undue delay. We will also establish the federal government’s role in promoting and facilitating collective bargaining and helping the parties bring their negotiations to a rapid and successful conclusion, committing to a high standard for intervening in strikes, including under the Railway Labor Act.
The right of workers to come together and form a union is under attack. We must unrig the rules that block workers from having the union they want and update our labor laws to make it more possible. We must change labor law so that it is easier for unions and employers to enter into multi-employer agreements establishing minimum workplace standards related to wages, benefits, and working conditions.
Democrats believe taxpayer dollars should never flow to employers who steal workers’ wages, violate labor laws, engage in union-busting, or exploit immigrant workers to depress working conditions for all workers. We will increase funding and staffing at the Department of Labor to aggressively enforce wage, hour, health, and safety rules across the economy. Democrats believe employees who are being misclassified, including gig and platform workers, deserve wage and workplace protections including minimum wage and overtime pay, and we support using the ABC test to determine employee status. Democrats believe that all workers should be able to hold their employers accountable for unpaid or underpaid wages, regardless of corporate structure. We support using grants and collaborative relationships with community organizations to ensure that workers know their rights and responsibilities under the law. Democrats will strengthen labor rights for the more than 20 million public-sector employees in the United States by passing the Public Service Freedom to Negotiate Act, which would provide a federal guarantee for public-sector employees to bargain for better pay and benefits and the working conditions they deserve.
We cannot hope to raise wages without taking on the profound racial biases at work in our employment system. The wage gap between Black workers and white workers is higher today than it was 20 years ago. It takes a typical Black woman 19 months to earn what a typical white man earns in 12 months—and for typical Latinas and Native American women, it takes almost two years. Democrats believe we need to be much more proactive and aggressive in rooting out discrimination in our employment system. We will increase funding to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and increase its authority to initiate directed investigations into civil rights violations, violations of the rights of people with disabilities, and violations against LGBTQ+ people, especially transgender women of color. Federal contractors should be required to develop and disclose plans to recruit and promote people of color, women, LGBTQ+ people, people with disabilities, and veterans—and be held accountable for delivering.
Democrats believe a strong, secure, and democratic Israel is vital to the interests of the United States. Our commitment to Israel’s security, its qualitative military edge, its right to defend itself, and the 2016 Memorandum of Understanding is ironclad. Democrats recognize the worth of every Israeli and every Palestinian. That’s why we will work to help bring to an end a conflict that has brought so much pain to so many. We support a negotiated two-state solution that ensures Israel’s future as a Jewish and democratic state with recognized borders and upholds the right of Palestinians to live in freedom and security in a viable state of their own.
Democrats oppose any unilateral steps by either side—including annexation—that undermine prospects for two states. Democrats will continue to stand against incitement and terror. We oppose settlement expansion. We believe that while Jerusalem is a matter for final status negotiations, it should remain the capital of Israel, an undivided city accessible to people of all faiths. Democrats will restore U.S.-Palestinian diplomatic ties and critical assistance to the Palestinian people in the West Bank and Gaza, consistent with U.S. law. We oppose any effort to unfairly single out and delegitimize Israel, including at the United Nations or through the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions Movement, while protecting the Constitutional right of our citizens to free speech.
https://democrats.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/2020-Democratic-Party-Platform.pdf
full platform link
basically Biden 2.0 in a younger shell
that $15 an hour the citizens demanded a decade ago is still talked about
after having derailed the rail workers’ strike, they mentioned them at the convention
still going to be arming a government committing genocide
police reform was mentioned, and it was a watered-down version of what Biden had talked about the last election
the Democrats also failed to uphold the promise of protecting our environment and on police reform during Biden’s presidency with Georgia with cop city, but both are still on their platform just a light version of it
We will take action to protect wildernesses and waters, and require full, rigorous, and transparent scientific and environmental reviews of any proposed mining projects near national treasures.
Biden and Harris have turned a deaf ear to the protesters who were protesting on our behalf demanding better to instead hold a celeb filled gala
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This description of what she said last night is undeservedly charitable. There was a tone shift about half way through, where all the joyful, salt of the earth family shit shifted into Emperor Palpatine territory. It happens right around when she invoked the word “lethal”. I heard nothing, absolutely nothing, to indicate that her administration will veer in any way from Biden’s actively genocidal policies. There were platitudes about Palestinians, but honestly she deserves no benefit of the doubt on this given how vague she is being and what has occurred this last year. It’s ironic that DO SOMETHING was a theme for her since she communicated that she’s not really doing much but supporting Israel and providing cover for their atrocities all while wrapping herself in a fuzzy veneer of joyful neighborliness.
As a whole, the speech was incredibly disheartening and has evaporated any active excitement I had for her campaign. It sounds like her plan is to GO BACK to to triangulation strategies that made both the Clinton and Obama administrations so middling and ineffective. I thought we might be on the precipice of an actual change in Democratic politics, but I guess that was fanciful hope.
It’s called doing the hard work of diplomacy and upholding our promises as a country. Did you miss the part where she then deftly fit in that she’s pushing for an immediate ceasefire, the full withdrawal of the Israeli military, and a 2 state solution? She’s actually accomplishing something quite incredible by authentically embodying both of those positions. She will plot a new path forward that will surprise many, as she has surprised many people many times so far in this race (1 month!)
Also, what “promise” are we upholding with regard to Israel? Did we promise to help genocide Palestinians? If so, fuck our our promises and any leaders, candidates or constituents who advocate it.
Did you miss the part where dangling the prospect of a 2 state solution has been used as stalling tactic by Israel and the US for about 30 years at this point? Did you miss the part where Israel is not actually participating in negotiations, as evidenced by the fact that they assassinated the main Hamas guy that was involved with negotiations? Do you actually think that Harris, or Biden, or the DNC are not aware of these things and just might be banking on a general ignorance about the history of this region to avoid being held accountable? These are not new positions. People who have been paying attention have been hearing the same sentiments for decades with no progress. It’s almost like the leaders expressing this stuff are lying and distracting and gaslighting.
Why would you take anything that she is saying at face value? The Biden administration has been delaying action for almost a year now, by saying the same things that Harris is now saying.
“She will plot a path” - This sound a lot like ‘I have a secret plan to end the war in Vietnam’. Why should I believe that? She has offered nothing but slightly more warm and fuzzy platitudes than what Biden himself has expressed.
She had a chance to show leadership in this moment, and she did the opposite. Listen, I’m glad she’s not a fascist like here opponent, but that doesn’t excuse what she presented last night. If we don’t hold our leaders to higher standards, we will never actually accomplish anything real. I’m glad that a Harris win means we get a reprieve from US fascism for at least another four years, but based on her presentation, we’re going to get more of the same middling, ineffective, mealymouthed , insecure Democratic Party leadership that characterized the last two Democratic administrations. Given the opportunity in this moment, that is a tragic mistake.
palestinian protesters have nobody to blame but themselves for making their movement so toxic by ignoring the rabid antisemitism from their camp while allowing white nationalists to march with them.
Huh? I’m gonna need you to cite some sources.
That’s an opinion piece, and one that itself includes no actual evidence that protesters have in any way invited or accepted white supremacists, merely that white supremacists have adopted protest language. You’re repeated a disgusting bit of propaganda.
I think those things only happened in people’s imaginations. Not outside of them.
She/Biden can end it with a single phone call. Her words ring hollow
I didn’t realize this generational conflict was so easy to fix. Who would they call?
Reagan was able to end carpet bombing with a call. George HW. Bush was able to end carpet bombing with a call, Margaret Thatcher was able to end carpet bombing with a call. Harris could end this bombing with a call. Out of one side of their mouth, they talk cease fire. And out of the other side of their mouth, they’re saying that they’ll send more money and weapons. This is why we cannot trust them. We listen to what they say and watch what they do.
They would call the leader of the israeli state and threaten to stop shipping weapons. Just like it was done multiple times in the past.
When Reagan and HW Bush made this phone call, the wars ended overnight. Why wouldnt it work for Biden/Kamala?
Harris is more left than Biden, and it’s difficult to criticize someone before they even have the power to act. So it’s a tough choice, give her a chance to show how she can deescalate things there…or Trump who claims he’ll end it, period. Which he didn’t do when he had the position before, but…maybe again? Yeah, tough choice.
Calling for a ceasefire is absolutely a first step (that would be Biden you should be complaining about, Harris isn’t President yet). The wars never stopped though, those two sides would go at each other with sticks and stones (and have). Only they can fix the problems, one that was not helped at all by other European white men drawing borders long ago without any regard for the results.
Harris is more left than Biden
Did you not listen to her acceptance speech last night? She. is far to the right of Biden, who was to the right of people like Bush and Reagan.
America should end it, but a phonecall isn’t gonna do that. They’d need a surgical strike on all of Israel’s nukes, as a starter.
That…would have some interesting consequences.
It’s my armchair theory that hardliner Israeli command has made it clear to the US that if they feel they cannot “defend themselves” any more, that they have a nuclear option ready to deploy against Iran.
This is not an excuse for the US stance on Israel. Not an excuse for what Israel is doing. Not an excuse for Iran’s actions or support.
but it’s my only working mental model for how Israel can act so freely. Even if the US is generally aligned with Israel’s goals (anti Hamas, anti Iran), the way they are conducting this offensive is horrific and is sucking the US in their wake. Obviously the US doesn’t care about some settlements and farms in Palestine. Obviously the US doesn’t “want” to be associated with killing civilians in this tiny strip of land that is “insignificant” to US needs. Is Israel really doing something for the US That it couldn’t do another way? If not, then what are they bargaining with?
And to head off some replies, I know, the US has killed lots of civilians. Has had lots of historic issues. Has conducted unjust war. I know. I’m only discussing this particular situation in 2024.
I’m 100% with you. It’s easy for us to judge their decision making from the outside, but if I were sitting in a classified meeting and my SoS told me, “if you turn on Israel, Netanyahu’s government will nuke Iran”, I would do everything I could do not to piss off Bibi’s government, because I’d be preventing nuclear war. If they also told me, “if you tell anyone you’re thinking about turning on Israel, Iran will nuke them because they already have a weapon”, I would do everything I could do not to reveal a hint of reservation about supporting Israel, because I’d be preventing nuclear war. I sincerely think they’ve been backed into a corner because any alternate course of action risks actual nuclear Armageddon. I think they’re less concerned with how criticism of Israel would play politically than they are about how what happens next would play politically. Maybe I’m wrong, but that situation perfectly explains a LOT of the weird posturing.
If it were a binary choice between allowing genocide and nuclear Armageddon, then I would do absolutely nothing to intervene. I would simultaneously explore EVERY diplomatic channel at my disposal to try to come up with a third option, even if it meant tens of thousands of Gazans are going to die in the process. It’s sad but true.
Yep agree
I want to highlight, and think you’ll agree:
I’m not trying to build some savior, private struggle narrative for the US DoD. They are just acting expediently for their long term goals, and we just aren’t privy to them all. And the whole “oh noes oct 7 was a tragedy!” Narrative doesn’t hold enough water for this.
Oh yeah the narratives are all performative bullshit. The DoD is absolutely evil, but in the sense that they won’t hesitate to use evil means to accomplish what they’d call “good” (i.e. self-interested) ends. Also their list of “good” ends is ludicrously expansive, but I just happen to agree with them in this instance that averting nuclear war is incontrovertibly “good.” It’s the politicians’ job to figure out how to walk out of a classified meeting and sell their decisions to the public, and that requires a lot of contorted pandering when the stakes are so high and the information so secretive and potentially catastrophic. If these weren’t two nuclear powers who wanted to erase one another from the surface of the planet, I might be more judgmental of the US government’s motives, but whether we like it or not (and thanks to the orange dipshit and his stupid fucking advisors) Iran is likely already a nuclear power. This is absolutely not a 20th century middle east conflict. This is a whole new ballgame that potentially threatens the survival of all of humanity.
Well put
It’s religion. Being harder on Israel, or even just reducing support, will have a backlash back in the US from so many believers that it would be political suicide. Seems to be the case for many hard decisions - if you as a politician play hard ball, you suffer ruining any more progress in your career to do other things. From the armchair one can call out a lot of obvious things, with the only result being a few heated replies to the comment.
That’s fine for the podium and the speeches, but I’m talking about the real work of Intel, special ops, arms transfers, the background stuff.
Edit I don’t think the DoD gives a fuck about anything about reelections and such, yet they are entangled. And I don’t mean the Colorado springs momon rah rah military, I mean the actual closed door deciders.
Man, if only Germany didn’t gift them those subs…
If Biden is doing such a good job, and things are going good… why is Harris talking about changing everything on Day 1? I don’t get it… they’re in power now, and yet, everything is STILL Trump’s fault…
Your boy Don is a shitty racist and pedophile.
