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Kamala Harris' running mate choice narrows to Tim Walz, Josh Shapiro, sources say

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2024/08/05/kamala-harris-running-mate-tim-walz-josh-shapiro/74675106007/

emocratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris has narrowed her search for a vice presidential running mate to two finalists, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz.

Kamala Harris' running mate choice narrows to Tim Walz, Josh Shapiro, sources say

Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris has narrowed her search for a vice presidential running mate to two finalists, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, three sources with knowledge of the matter said on Monday.

Harris, the U.S. vice president, is expected to announce her selection by Tuesday, ahead of her first scheduled public appearance with her running mate in the evening at Temple University in Philadelphia.

80 comments

CaptainKickass

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Walz has Bernie's seal of approval

That's all I need to know

qprimed

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indeed. Bernie remains a reasonably clean and reasonably clear assessor/signaler. he makes complex political decisions that much easier for voters.

going to miss the golden yardstick of his judgment when he finally bows out.

CaptainKickass

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Unfortunately we'll probably never see the likes of him again

mosiacmango

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AOC is an excellent standard bearer for the Bernie style progressives.

xmunk

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Warren is also excellent and we have a number of less popular policy wonk politicians around who are extremely driven on specific topics - Whitehouse, as an example, is excellent on climate change.

GBU_28

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The bern-index

JaymesRS

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My sole problem is Bernie as the Oprah of politics. He enabled quite a few people/trolls who were pretty toxic, the worst of the Bernie Bro/Chapo Trap House dirtbag movement, Briahna Joy Gray, and David Sirota off the top of my head.

GBU_28

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How did he enable.the fuckwits at chapo?

Anamnesis

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What's wrong with chapo?

JaymesRS

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Rather than me typing a bunch out, this is a good summary.

Anamnesis

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So your objection is with fans of the podcast legitimately calling Warren a snake for withholding her endorsement until after Biden had solidified the Dems against the left? I can't agree with that; it was a fuckup on her part and if she was a real left wing politician she would be have thrown her support behind someone who actually believes in what she says she stands for, rather than waiting until the moderates in the party had a fait accompli. I've never forgiven her for that.

JaymesRS

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Was that all the farther you read, or just felt like cherry picking that one only?

Anamnesis

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What else is there? The rest is just civility handwringing.

MagicCuboid

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My friends in Minneapolis are pretty enamored with Walz. I don't think they'd be thrilled to have to share him haha

Rapidcreek

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Bernie never won a national race.

ganksy

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True but not because he wasn't the best candidate

Rapidcreek

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That obviously is a minority opinion.

Riccosuave

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I appreciate the irony of you getting ratio'd with this comment 😂

Rapidcreek

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The truth gets ratio all the time here. It's so easy to rattle the chain of Bernie believers.

Jtotheb

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Again, Bernie Sanders is very much a real person

Rapidcreek

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Met Bernie. Nice guy.

Coelacanth

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Walz would be good, just please don't pick Shapiro. Can we avoid shooting ourselves in the foot for once? We've got a good thing going with Kamala.

TimeChild

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Do you think Shapiro would lock down PA? I like Walz more from what I know, but seems MN is in the bag regardless. Can’t see the strategy side of his pick other than Walz seems to be the progressive favorite, and checks the old white male box.

Coelacanth

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I don't think he does lock down PA, his approval is solid but nothing crazy. And on top of that he has so many vulnerabilities. School vouchers and protest response, on top of old quotes being dredged out and the potential cover-up of sexual misconduct of one of his aides.

I would have looked at Kelly for his cheap points to score with low information voters (combat decorated Navy captain, astronaut), but Walz is also incredibly popular and has a good track record.

AlligatorBlizzard

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Walz is more likely to deliver Wisconsin and maybe Michigan, which are also valuable. (And like the other commenter, I also question the ability of a VP pick to reliably deliver their home state.) Wisconsin seems to really like Walz as much as we do here in Minnesota. And I think he does well in Pennsylvania, Walz has the vibes of an older and more mellow version (but not as old as he looks, school lunchroom duty will age anyone) of what we all thought Fetterman would be. Walz is from a small town, is a former national guardsman and high school football coach, and iirc used to enjoy hunting. He appeals to working class, blue collar voters in ways very few other Democrats can. He's also involved with the national party (possibly the convention), someone on TikTok knew something was up with Biden just before he dropped out because Walz flew to DC to meet with Biden. The establishment Democrats like him and so do the progressives - he's exactly who we need right now.

Also, he's the reason we're all calling Republicans weird.

Fredselfish

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She going choose Shapiro because DNC tells her too and fucking hurt her campaign. Goddammit for once do the right thing here Shaprio is a horrible choice that fucking none of us want. Hence why they pick him. Dumb fucking Democrats hate them.

eestileib

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There are some impressively out of touch people making the calls in the democratic party.

imposedsensation

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I like Shapiro. I was pulling for Kelly because I don't want to give up Shapiro as my governor. Don't let one issue define a person, you're never going to get everything you want.

Fredselfish

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Dude is got baggage that will hurt her. He can fuck off.

imposedsensation

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What baggage? Also what did he do to you? Does he represent you? Have you ever met him or talked to him?

grue

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I don't think "running mate from state X will lock down state X" deserves as much credence as political parties give it in general.

Kecessa

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Not based on historical data

winterayars

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I don't think Shapiro would lock PA. I think it's pretty likely she could pick him and lose the state or not pick him and win.

AmbiguousProps

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Nah, I highly doubt him being the VP pick could win the state alone. I think that Waltz is a better pick as a whole, including PA.

MagicShel

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We definitely need any help we can get with PA. If PA goes blue that opens up a few avenues to the White House. Without it I think the only route is taking every single other swing state. Or maybe a surprise flip of a red state.

ValorieAF

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PA is already pretty firmly blue-purple. WI is more an uncertain purple.

solrize

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Neither state is in the bag and no one can lock down PA. Shapiro and Walz are both white males. We are in a not very good timeline no matter what, so I'll try not to worry.

gravitas_deficiency

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It’s gotta be Walz. Shapiro would be a slap in the face to the Arab-American community, which we all very much need the support of if we want to prevent the fascists from winning the presidency.

timewarp

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At least let them believe Kamala would be firmer against Israel, even though we know she won't be... Am I right? I prefer Walz too but picking Shapiro would be more honest to voters about what to expect.

EnderWiggin

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I wanted Kelly, but I'd be pretty happy with Walz. Shapiro would just take the wind out of the sails.

tigeruppercut

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Harris closed out her search by interviewing three top candidates - Walz, Shapiro and U.S. Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona - at her Naval Observatory residence on Sunday, the sources said.

Kelly caused a stir on Sunday night when he posted on X "Now, my mission is serving Arizonans," which was interpreted as a sign he was no longer in the running. He deleted the post and replaced it with "I've learned that when your country asks you to serve, you always answer the call."

Sounds like nothing's official yet about eliminating Kelly. I think he'd be the best choice as well

GiddyGap

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I really like Kelly, too. I think there was just a lot of risk involved with pulling an incumbent Democratic Senator in a swing state that could potentially give an extra seat to the Republicans in an election year that's already difficult for the Democrats on the Senate side.

GiddyGap

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And Walz it is:

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/kamala-harris-picks-minnesotas-tim-walz-vice-president-sources-tell-reuters-2024-08-06/

EnderWiggin

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And the more I read the more fired up I get. I have liked Walz for a while but just been spending more time reading deeper into his background, experience, and policy positions. Feels like he'll really help drive the campaign and align to a lot of the wider progressive objectives.

ZombiFrancis

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Walz to win; or Shapiro to lock up at AIPAC money.

Hmm.

eestileib

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It's going to be fucking Josh Shapiro. sigh

GiddyGap

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No.

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/kamala-harris-picks-minnesotas-tim-walz-vice-president-sources-tell-reuters-2024-08-06/

eestileib

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Sometimes it's great to be wrong, this is one of those times. Great news!

thesporkeffect

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She already said the announcement will take place in Philly, so ... 😮‍💨

teamevil

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She pulled the olde switcheroo

ikidd

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Democrat hacks will push Shapiro because its the worst choice.

GiddyGap

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She chose Walz

ZombieMantis

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For what it's worth, (and if I'm not mistaken) Pelosi also endorsed Walz.

BradleyUffner

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I'm out of the loop. What's wrong with Shapiro?

MagicCuboid

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I've read hand-wringing over the fact that he's Jewish and supports Israel. I'm not sure if there are other concerns.

Evrala

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He also helped cover up a murder for supporters. Ruled that a woman who was stabbed 20 times including more than one stab that went into her brain was a suicide. Because the probable suspect was a well connected supporter. That is still in litigation.

He's also just not liked in general in his home state and is a right leaning democrat.

Voroxpete

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That's not just hand-wringing, it's a serious strategic concern in an election where the Dems need to mobilize young progressive voters, and those same voters are heavily depressed by the US' complicity in an actual genocide.

Harris needs to steer the fuck clear of anything to do with Isreal right now. She's done a good job of keeping her own hands relatively clean on the issue so far (skipping Netanyahu's visit was a smart choice), and it would be a serious misstep now to tie herself to anyone who has a history of strongly supporting Isreal.

I'm not exactly expecting her to turn around and condemn Bibi and pledge to stop the war; there's no way she's gonna risk pissing off AIPAC like that. But she definitely needs to thread a very fine needle here, and in that context Shapiro is not the play.

MagicCuboid

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Pretty psyched she picked Walz! I agree with your concerns above, they just don't apply to me as I'd vote either way.

imposedsensation

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How do you figure? He's a moderate loved by both sides that saved PA feom Doug Mastriano.... Basically what the country needs right now.

fubarx

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For those like me, who had never heard of Tim Walz until recently, here's an August 2, 2024 episode of the Ezra Klein podcast with an interview: https://pod.link/1548604447

bitchkat

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Walz has been amazing and the amount of progressive laws that have been passed in MN in the past two years with a 1 vote majority in the state house is ridiculous. This doesn't even scratch the surface but

Recreational weed
Mandatory sick time accrual -- my company had to give those of us in MN one or two additional sick days,
Free school lunches
Banning of non-competes (still important due to the recent supreme court ruling that limits the ability of federal agencies to set regulations)
Reproductive rights

https://mn.gov/governor/accomplishments/accomplishments.jsp

We're certainly going to miss him as governor but he will be an amazing VP.

ChillPenguin

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Yeah I'm a little sad to see him go. But I know America needs someone who gives a shit.

bitchkat

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And who is amazing at getting shit done with the smallest of majorities

dhork

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I would'd have a problem with either. But "Harris/Shapiro" sounds like a personal injury law firm, while "Harris/Walz" sounds like some political consultant firm.

Either is better than "Trump/Vance", which just sounds weird.

sebsch

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On the first I thought Christoph Waltz. Even if not possible, this would be a magnificent choice! 🦷

Rapidcreek

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I don't care who it is. It's time.

PhobosAnomaly

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Brit here, coming in peace: why was Pete Butt-something not closer in the fight for the running mate slot?

He seems to be fairly sensible, youthful, a bit of charisma about him, and seems like he would represent the country well to outsiders.

abrake

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Just guessing but:

He's gay and that might turn off some swing voters especially people who are already hesitant about having a black woman at the top of the ticket
He's never won any election beyond a municipal one, so he may be seen as electorally untested.
His resume is a bit thin with just his time as a mayor of a small town and time as the transportation secretary.

timbuck2themoon

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#1. It's optics and bullshit but it's true.

PhobosAnomaly

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Thanks for taking the time to get back to me, it's appreciated from across the pond.

As for point 1, I thought that would be a strength. I don't think anyone from backwardsville would vote Democrat anyway so his sexuality wouldn't be an issue, but I'd have thought a different viewpoint would have been appreciated little more amongst the blue electorate.

As for the second and third points, I guess that's a valid concern. I'm hoping that the pivot away from ancient politicians taking top roles will make more of an impact and allow those with a shorter track record to shine - very much like the Trudeaus, Attals, or Marins elsewhere in the world.

Thanks all the same!

Zaktor

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As someone else from the US I think your analysis on point 1 is correct. Anyone so dedicated to bigotry to be turned off by a really charismatic and vanilla gay man was already voting for Trump. Democrats way too often jump at shadows of secret bigots in their mind and end up enforcing bigotry in the process. Even right now the idea that the VP must be a white man is ridiculous.

I'm not saying all the various forms of bigotry are solved, but if you're voting based on minority traits of a VP, you already knew who your candidate was with or without them.

MrVilliam

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Excellent question. I think the answer is that the people who choose such things are thinking more about election strategy than job performance. And while I think this is not an issue with anybody who would vote for Harris in the first place, the people making the choice might think that Buttigieg's sexuality hurts election chances? Or maybe because he has young kids at home that he might want to be there for? Idk, I thought he didn't have enough experience when he ran for president, but Biden fucking nailed it by making him Secretary of Transportation. He's killing it and developing much-needed political capital and federal experience to the point that I think he's ready now. He'll have his turn very soon, I'm pretty sure. Potential presidential nominee in 32.

PhobosAnomaly

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Brilliant answer, thank you for your time and effort. We seem to be in the same page - he seems to be a young and idealistic politician where he hasn't really put a foot wrong yet.

Looking at the alternatives with an outsider's perspective, there just doesn't seem to be anybody on Pete's level but I guess that's a very subjective opinion.

Thanks all the same!

DragonTypeWyvern

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Walz.

Harris is the single most likely candidate to be assassinated in living memory. I'd prefer her backup to not be someone that doesn't support universal healthcare. And he backs school vouchers and the, you know, fucking genocide.

MediaBiasFactChecker

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USSMojave

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Immature children on this site downvote the MBFC bot when they don't like what they hear. Thought we were better than that

Edit: and there you go, proving my point 🙂

subignition

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Doing the whole "you're downvoting me so I must be right" bit is pretty immature all on its own tbh

reddithalation

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i really don't like the idea of ground news though, they act all unbiased an etc and then tell you exactly how biased your media is and what to think about it, AND THEN summarize it with (surely 100% trustworthy and pure) LLMs.