• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in Washington, D.C., today to address a joint session of Congress. On Tuesday, hundreds of demonstrators opposed to the war in Gaza staged a sit-in at a congressional office building. Thousands more are expected to demonstrate today during Netanyahu’s speech. Inside the Capitol, nearly two dozen Democratic lawmakers say they will not attend the joint session. At the same time, both Vice President Kamala Harris and Sen. Patty Murray of Washington declined to preside over Netanyahu’s address. The Israeli prime minister is expected to meet with Harris and President Biden separately on Thursday. As Harris begins her presidential campaign in earnest, Politico national security reporter Eric Bazail-Eimil explains what a Harris foreign policy might look like.
• And in headlines: The head of the U.S. Secret Service resigned, convicted New Jersey Sen. Robert Menendez announced he’d resign next month, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer endorsed Harris’s campaign for president.

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TRANSCRIPT

Priyanka Aribindi: It’s Wednesday, July 24th. I’m Priyanka Aribindi. 

Juanita Tolliver: And I’m Juanita Tolliver and this is What a Day. The show where we’re wondering why Snoop Dogg was chosen to carry the United States’ torch at the Summer Olympics opening ceremony in Paris. Like why?

Priyanka Aribindi: I think there is only one logical reason for this, and it is because he is simply an expert on lighting up. 

Juanita Tolliver: It’s the brand. The brand is strong. [laughing]

Priyanka Aribindi: Truly, the brand is strong. [music break] On today’s show, Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle announces her resignation after a heated hearing on the Hill. Plus, President Biden releases a statement about Sonya Massey, who was killed by police earlier this month. 

Juanita Tolliver: But first, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in Washington, DC today to address a joint session of Congress. Netanyahu should not expect a warm welcome in D.C. as protests started on Capitol Hill Tuesday afternoon and are expected to expand around the Capitol Hill complex throughout Wednesday. Inside the building so far, at least 21 Democratic lawmakers are boycotting the speech. Both Vice President Kamala Harris and Senator Patty Murray of Washington state declined to preside over Netanyahu’s address. And Senator Ben Cardin of Maryland, the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, will be seated behind Netanyahu for today’s address. Following his speech, Netanyahu is scheduled to meet with President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris separately on Thursday, and he has a meeting scheduled with former President Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago for Friday. This is Netanyahu’s first international trip since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, and since the International Criminal Court said it is seeking a warrant for his arrest for possible war crimes in Gaza in a ruling issued in May. 

Priyanka Aribindi: Yeah, very, very closely watched here. I mean, no love lost between Bibi and Biden. 

Juanita Tolliver: Right. 

Priyanka Aribindi: It will be very interesting to see what happens between him and Vice President Harris. I mean, tell us more. What do we know about all of this? 

Juanita Tolliver: Yeah. As Vice President Harris starts her 2024 presidential bid, questions have been swirling about her alignment with President Biden’s unwavering support for Israel and the potential for her to publicly express a divergent stance on the war. To get a sense of Harris’s position on Gaza and what her foreign policy posture would look like if she is elected president. I spoke with Eric Bazail-Eimil. He’s a national security reporter for Politico. I started by asking him how the vice president’s tone and position on Gaza compares to President Biden’s. 

Eric Bazail-Eimil: Vice President Harris is a supporter of Israel. She has longstanding relationships with Israeli political leaders, going back to when she was a U.S. senator. You know, she visited Israel, met with Prime Minister Netanyahu, then opposition leader Isaac Herzog. So she supports Israel. She supports the Abraham Accords. But as we’ve seen throughout the war, Harris has been a lot more forward on messaging than the administration. She’s also been much more clear about humanitarian implications. Vice President Harris has also been within the administration, much more critical of Netanyahu, and more in support of pushing the administration to take a tougher line on Netanyahu and really hold Netanyahu more to account about the delivery of humanitarian aid into the territory. Harris supporters will also emphasize that there’s not much daylight on some of the policy aspects, the broader way to solve the Israel-Palestine conflict. But when it comes to the war, there are important nuances and there are important, you know, shifts that a Harris presidency could continue to go down. 

Juanita Tolliver: Now, with that in mind, I want to ask about one more comparison. How does her stance on Gaza compare to Donald Trump, her would be opponent potentially? 

Eric Bazail-Eimil: If there is a question about there being daylight between her and President Biden, there’s absolutely daylight between her and former President Trump. The reality is, is that former President Trump very much supports the objectives of the Israeli government right now. He has not been particularly critical of the end result of the war, and advisers and those close to the former president have emphasized that, you know, a Trump administration would not be as harsh or punitive towards increased settlement expansion. The violence that we’ve seen in the West Bank, Jared Kushner, you know, there were some widely reported comments about redeveloping the Gaza Strip. There would still be very ironclad support for the Israeli government under a Trump administration. 

Juanita Tolliver: We know one of the big issues that President Biden faced when he was in this election was his declining support among progressive voters over his support for Israel, particularly Arab American voters and young voters across demographics. So we saw this with the uncommitted campaign that began in Michigan, where 100,000 plus voters opted to vote uncommitted in their state’s primary. But that movement expanded nationally and even earned delegates to the Democratic convention. So will Vice President Harris have an opportunity to win back some of these folks who had turned away from Joe Biden? 

Eric Bazail-Eimil: A lot of that is going to be decided in the next couple days. How she handles Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s visit to Washington this week. She has decided not to attend the speech in person. So that image of her potentially sitting behind Netanyahu while he addresses Congress that won’t exist. You know, there will be a private meeting, uh while the Israeli delegation is here, but certainly not that same kind of visceral image of the vice president above the shoulders of you know a very polarizing Israeli leader for those on the left. The State Department has also done, you know, its own internal surveys. We reported on this in our National Security Daily newsletter in the Middle East and in large parts of the world, the Vice President is seen as a much more effective messenger on the Middle East and on the situation in Gaza. That’s why critics, those folks who have resigned from the administration in protest of Gaza policy, say that there’s an opportunity there, both politically and also from a fundamental peacebuilding perspective, you know, to shift in tone under Vice President Harris. 

Juanita Tolliver: So what should we expect to hear in a report out from that one on one meeting that she will be having with Netanyahu later this week? 

Eric Bazail-Eimil: Well, we’ll probably see. And what you could expect to look for is, you know, discussion of the humanitarian situation, conversations about, you know, escalation at the northern border with Lebanon, what the game plan is for exiting the Gaza Strip and the continuation of military operations. What the day after plan looks like. I’m not sure that we’re going to see a lot of specific details in the public readouts, but certainly we can anticipate that those issues will be discussed during the conversations. I also do not think that it will differ too much from what President Biden discusses with the Prime Minister later this week. 

Juanita Tolliver: And you spoke to some of the federal officials who have resigned over the past several months due to Biden’s pro-Israel stance. Tell us more about those individuals and what they think about the potential impact Kamala Harris could have on U.S. involvement in the war if she is elected. 

Eric Bazail-Eimil: It’s not a huge, huge pool, but there’s been a group of a certain sizable number. It’s included appointees at the Interior Department, the Department of Education and high ranking, you know, spokespeople at the State Department, including the State Department’s spokesperson specifically for the Middle East. You know, one of the most important details that we’re seeing coming up from them is they see Harris as somebody who could be a little bit more persuaded. And they also see, you know, some potential given the fact that she’s spoken and she’s thought about what the next steps look like. How does the United States move forward towards a long lasting peace, you know, between Israelis and Palestinians? They see it as, you know, not a closed deal, in part because Harris is from a different generation than the president. You know, that didn’t grow up necessarily with that same idea of ironclad unconditional support for Israel. Harris is more a product of this more recent landscape, right, that we’ve seen under Netanyahu, especially the last several years of Netanyahu’s first premiership. You know, where we saw settlement expansion, we saw, you know, volleys of violence between Israelis and Palestinians. So that context also informs it a little. 

Juanita Tolliver: I was going to add another variable of that is that she’s still establishing her posture in terms of foreign policy and on a global stage. She’s been developing that more as vice president. Whereas much of her career prior to now has been as a prosecutor and a senator from the state of California. But Politico recently reviewed more than 100 of Harris’s publicly available calls and meetings with world leaders during her time as vice president. What do we know so far about how she would handle other big foreign policy issues, like the war in Ukraine and trade with China? 

Eric Bazail-Eimil: When it comes to Ukraine, Vice President Harris will not differ fundamentally from the president’s strategy of, you know, supporting Ukraine. The question will be more so how much will the United States be able to marshall resources towards Ukraine and rally European allies? There is a difference. The president came in to, you know, the White House with over five decades of experience. He was chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and vice president for eight years and had a very heavy foreign policy portfolio. By definition, the vice president would come in with somewhat less experience and significantly less developed relationships. That doesn’t mean they don’t exist. She’s spoken with French President Emmanuel Macron. She has met with Zelenskyy multiple times. On Asia, which is the other big bucket of her foreign policy engagements. There are certainly more fleshed out relationships. She’s been to multiple ASEAN summit gatherings of Asian world leaders. And, you know, the administration has emphasized that they see Vice President Harris as an integral part of their Indo-Pacific strategy and their outreach to allies. I do think that we’ll see continuations of the broad foreign policy vision. Some of it is going to be shaped in terms of implementation by how much she builds relationships in the next couple of months, and then at the beginning of her first term, if she is elected in November. Some of it is also going to depend on the people who are in her orbit, who’s her secretary of state, who’s her running mate, who are the national security advisor, the secretary of defense, because that’s also a difference between her and the president, where Jake Sullivan was a longtime aide to him. Antony Blinken, the secretary of state, was his national security advisor, as vice president. There was more of a Biden world on foreign policy. Vice President Harris won’t have that luxury if she’s elected. She’s going to be starting a little bit more from scratch. So that is also going to influence how it works out in the end. 

Juanita Tolliver: Also, another comparison point with what a President Harris international support team looks like compared to President Trump and his posture globally. 

Eric Bazail-Eimil: The difference won’t be so dependent on advisors between Harris and Trump. A lot of what a Trump foreign policy would look like in a second term is going to depend on who is his secretary of state and his national security adviser and who’s in his ear, which is why European allies are antsy about Senator JD Vance being his running mate, because they see Vance’s history, saying he doesn’t really care what happens to Ukraine. It’s those issues that provide more anxiety for European leaders. You know, if Vice President Harris picks Senator Mark Kelly or Governor Andy Beshear or some other person as their running mate, they likely won’t experience the same kind of anxiety or the same kinds of private voicings of concern. And, you know, a Harris presidency will be very committed to international alliances. Her advisors are liberal internationalists. They’re going to support NATO. They’re going to support the United Nations. You’re still going to see a very human rights centered focus on foreign policy. Of course, under the Biden administration that has come under its own tensions, right. Trying to pull human rights forward in face of geopolitical constraints and realities. But there’s still at least going to be a rhetorical intention. A Trump presidency will focus a lot more on trade. It will focus a lot more on investments, or it will look at issues through the prism of immigration. The jury’s still very much out on what a second Trump presidency’s foreign policy will look like, but it will be different than if there was a Harris presidency. 

Juanita Tolliver: That was my conversation with Eric Bazail-Eimil, national security reporter for Politico. And we will continue to bring you all updates on all of Netanyahu’s meetings this week. 

Priyanka Aribindi: That is the latest for now. We’ll get to some headlines in just a moment. But if you like our show, please make sure to subscribe and share it with your friends. We’ll be right back after some ads. [music break]

[AD BREAK]

Priyanka Aribindi: Let’s wrap up with some headlines. 

[sung] Headlines. 

Priyanka Aribindi: U.S. Secret Service director Kimberly Cheatle resigned her post on Tuesday, as the agency faces a barrage of questions over how a 20 year old gunman was able to carry out an assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump. In a resignation letter to staff obtained by multiple news outlets, Cheatle wrote, quote, “I do not want my calls for resignation to be a distraction from the great work each and every one of you do towards our vital mission.” Cheatle faced bipartisan calls to step down during a congressional hearing on Monday. During that hearing, she insisted that she was still the best person to lead the agency, but admitted that the shooting was a, quote, “colossal failure.” 

Juanita Tolliver: New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez announced he will resign from the Senate next month following his recent conviction on charges including bribery, extortion and acting as a foreign agent. In a letter sent Tuesday to New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, Menendez wrote, quote, “while I fully intend to appeal the jury’s verdict all the way and including to the Supreme Court, I do not want the Senate to be involved in any lengthy process that will detract from its important work.” Menendez has served in the Senate since 2006, and was once the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. But his political career took its latest nosedive in 2022, when the FBI searched his home and seized a Mercedes Benz, 13 gold bars, which were hidden in clothing in his closet and $550,000 in cash. 

Priyanka Aribindi: Yeah, just normal, normal things to have in your house. Nothing to see here. 

Juanita Tolliver: [laugh] We should say that Menendez’s decision to wait until August 20th to leave the Senate is relatable. I means senators get paid on the 20th of every month. 

Priyanka Aribindi: I’m sorry. 

Juanita Tolliver: Yikes. 

Priyanka Aribindi: Dead, that is so–

Juanita Tolliver: Yikes. 

Priyanka Aribindi: –yikes. I mean, he doesn’t have his gold bars anymore, so. 

Juanita Tolliver: Yeah. 

Priyanka Aribindi: He needs to get cash somehow. 

Juanita Tolliver: Yeah. 

Priyanka Aribindi: I also, I’m sorry. We need to go back to the quote. He doesn’t want to detract from the important work of the Senate by um dragging them into this mess. Then why did you do all of this in the first place? What is wrong with you? 

Juanita Tolliver: And this isn’t his first trial related to fraud and other claims. So. 

Priyanka Aribindi: Yeah, he’s a mess. 

Juanita Tolliver: Yeah. 

Priyanka Aribindi: What are you talking about? Earlier this week, Illinois State Police released horrifying body cam footage showing a police officer shooting and killing Sonya Massey, a 36 year old mother of two. Early in the morning on July 6th. Massey, who was Black, called police to report a person outside of her home in Springfield, Illinois. The two officers who came to the scene didn’t find anyone outside the house and instead became suspicious of her. While searching inside her home, officer Sean Grayson, who is white, threatened to shoot Massey in the face while she was handling a pot of hot water near the stove. Grayson yelled at her to drop the pot. She apologized and ducked down with the pot still in her hands. Grayson then shot Massey multiple times, with at least one of the bullets hitting her in the face. Last week, Grayson was fired and charged with first degree murder. He has pleaded not guilty. Following the release of the body cam footage, President Joe Biden released a statement that reads in part, quote, “Sonya called the police because she was concerned about a potential intruder. When we call for help, all of us as Americans, regardless of who we are or where we live, should be able to do so without fearing for our lives.” Unfortunately, this statement has been made far too many times for far too many years, with–

Juanita Tolliver: Yup. 

Priyanka Aribindi: –little to no change. 

Juanita Tolliver: Right. I mean, this is sadly a reality, especially for people in Black and Brown households and communities. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer endorsed Vice President Harris’s campaign for president on Tuesday, one day after former speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi threw her support behind Harris. And as the vice president gains more ground in her bid for the White House, many are wondering who she’ll tap to be her VP. NBC news reported on Tuesday that the Harris campaign has requested vetting paperwork from five potential running mates, most of whom are Democratic state governors Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer are among those who were contacted, along with Democratic Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona. But it is possible that Harris could pick someone who isn’t on this list. Other rumored contenders include transportation secretary and former mayor of South Bend, Indiana Pete Buttigieg, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker. 

Priyanka Aribindi: Alright, love a good veep stakes. But what we do know for sure, whomever Harris picks will undoubtedly have more charisma and more charm than the Republican VP nominee, JD Vance, who had a truly lackluster first rally performance this week. He tried to show that he was country by bragging about drinking a Diet Mountain Dew. It got virtually no applause. Very sparse pity laughs, I think one. It very much gave us flashbacks to Jeb Bush asking the crowd to clap. The vibes are bad. 

Juanita Tolliver: The vibes are bad. Also, that space looked really empty. Like, I’m not even sure how many people were in that room with him, especially since he couldn’t even fill up the riser behind where he was standing on the podium. So I’m just like. Mmm. Yeah, you’re, you’re giving lackluster and I don’t think he’s got anything else. 

Priyanka Aribindi: It’s a tough look. And you also know that like Trump heard this Diet Mountain Dew thing and was like um he’s a Coke guy. He doesn’t do that. He does’t fuck with that green shit. No no no. [laughter]

Juanita Tolliver: I feel like he has bigger issues that should be concerning him about JD Vance. 

Priyanka Aribindi: No, no, no, but it’s Trump. It’s always the esthetic of things. Do you think he’s doing it because it’s like green, like Charlie XCX and he’s trying to be brat. 

Juanita Tolliver: I appreciate how intentional you’re being, he is not. [laughing] He doesn’t have the range. 

Priyanka Aribindi: The symbolism is there. He’s trying to be brat and he never will because you can’t be brat if you’re trying. 

Juanita Tolliver: He literally doesn’t have the range. 

Priyanka Aribindi: No. [laughter] Absolutely no. And those are the headlines. 

[AD BREAK]

Priyanka Aribindi: That is all for today. If you like the show, make sure you subscribe. Leave a review. Place your bets on your favorite VP candidate and tell your friends to listen. 

Juanita Tolliver: And if you’re into reading and not just reports of JD Vance flaming out on the campaign trail like me, What a Day is also a nightly newsletter. Check it out and subscribe at crooked.com/subscribe. I’m Juanita Tolliver.

Priyanka Aribindi: I’m Priyanka Aribindi. 

[spoken together] And light the way Snoop. 

Juanita Tolliver: He’s definitely got a plug in Paris. Like he wouldn’t sign up to be on the ground unless he had a plug. [laughing]

Priyanka Aribindi: No. No chance. Of course he does. 

Juanita Tolliver: Or even better yet, I feel like he has a staffer who just provides and rolls and has his stash ready to go. 

Priyanka Aribindi: I think yes, I think that is a job. 

Juanita Tolliver: Yeah, he has a job. 

Priyanka Aribindi: Yes. 

Juanita Tolliver: He’s got a team. [laugh] [music break]

Priyanka Aribindi: What a Day is a production of Crooked Media. It’s recorded and mixed by Bill Lancz. Our associate producer is Raven Yamamoto. We had production help today from Michell Eloy, Ethan Oberman, Greg Walters, and Julia Claire. Our showrunner is Erica Morrison and our executive producer is Adriene Hill. Our theme music is by Colin Gilliard and Kashaka.