Harris’ role in Afghanistan withdrawal a mystery despite being ‘last person in the room’ with Biden
Vice President Kamala Harris’ influence on the botched withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan remains unclear publicly despite her previously confirming she was the “last person in the room” with President Biden before he made the decision. According to a new Washington Post report, officials say Harris did not push for policy change but did raise some important questions during interagency meetings in early 2021 before what resulted in a chaotic 17-day evacuation from Kabul and a suicide bombing that killed 13 U.S. service members and roughly 170 Afghan civilians at Hamid Karzai International Airport’s Abbey Gate,. The vice president, now the Democratic presidential nominee, acted “like a district attorney” while asking questions during the deliberations but did not provide much insight into what she was thinking, one senior military official who spoke on condition of anonymity told the Post. “She never gave a sense for where she was on it,” the official told the newspaper. KAMALA HARRIS SHUTS DOWN ANTI-ISRAEL PROTESTERS DURING CAMPAIGN SPEECH IN MICHIGAN: ‘I’M SPEAKING’ Despite that account, another former military official who participated in the administration’s deliberations at the time told the Post he does not remember Harris “playing any role of significance” during meetings of the National Security Council that Biden led in 2021. The official did admit that the vice president could have counseled Biden outside those briefings. In a statement to the Post, a Harris aide said the vice president asked, “probing questions” during deliberations in which she was fully involved before the withdrawal and “strongly supported President Biden’s decision to end America’s longest war.” “We’re not going to get into the Vice President’s private counsel to the President,” the aide added. Positioning herself as a vice president who is closely involved in the administration’s key matters, Harris confirmed to CNN in 2021 that she was the “last person in the room” with Biden before his decision to withdraw U.S. troops and effectively end more than 20 years of war in Afghanistan. While campaigning for president in 2019, Harris said she wanted to “ensure that the country is on a path to stability, that we protect the gains that have been made for Afghan women and others,” according to the Post. HARRIS AND WALZ MADE UNPRECEDENTED ABORTION CLINIC VISIT PRIOR TO PRESIDENTIAL TICKET TEAM-UP When Biden’s presidency began in 2021, Afghan official Nader Nadery, who served as an adviser to then-Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, said he hoped Harris would help persuade Biden to keep some U.S. troops in the country until the Taliban could agree to a peace deal. With the Taliban’s seizure of power came the erosion of women’s rights, and Nadery questioned whether Harris had tried to convince Biden to change direction. “I hoped that President Biden listened to her and other voices who advocated for Afghan women,” he reportedly said of the withdrawal. Republicans and former President Trump have criticized Biden’s handling of the withdrawal, especially after Biden’s stunning omission of the 13 U.S. service members killed at Abbey Gate during the June presidential debate in Atlanta, where he claimed to be the “only president this century” and in “this decade” who did not have “any troops dying anywhere in the world.” Attendees of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee last month heard from the families of those service members, who condemned how Biden never publicly said the names of their loved ones. Now, as the Democratic ticket pivots to Harris and her newly selected running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, criticism of the vice president on the Afghanistan withdrawal has not gained similar traction. Fox News Digital reached out to Harris’ campaign and the vice president’s office for comment, but they did not immediately respond.
Harris becomes betting market favorite for first time after Walz pick
Vice President Kamala Harris has moved into the betting lead for the first time since being elevated to the top of the ticket. Harris has a 50.7% chance to be elected president, while former President Donald Trump sits at a 47.9% chance to win the election, according to the Real Clear Politics betting average on Thursday. Thursday marked the first time Harris has been the betting favorite to win the election, while it’s also the first time the Democratic ticket has been favored over Trump since May 1st, when President Biden was still in the race. On that day, Biden held a narrow 42.3% to 42.2% advantage in the Real Clear Politics betting average. KAMALA HARRIS AND HER NEWLY NAMED RUNNING MATE KICK OFF A BATTLEGROUND STATE SWING Since that day, Trump continued to put distance between himself and Biden, peaking as a 66.2% favorite on July 15. But Trump’s lead steadily declined in the weeks after Biden’s decision to drop out of the race and endorse Harris, who quickly went on to lock up the Democratic nomination. Trump’s odds tumble culminated Thursday, just days after Harris selected Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz to join her on the ticket, a move the Harris campaign believes will help her solidify support in critical Midwestern swing states such as Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin. VICE PRESIDENT HARRIS NAMES MINNESOTA GOV TIM WALZ AS HER RUNNING MATE Harris was either leading or tied with Trump on Thursday in all the major betting markets tracked by Real Clear Politics, with her biggest lead coming on the popular platform Predictit, a New Zealand-based prediction market that offers “shares” of political outcomes. Harris shares were selling for 57 cents on the platform as of Thursday morning, while Trump shares were selling for 46 cents, an 11-cent lead for the vice president. Shares on the platform are priced between $0.01 and $0.99, meaning the price of a share essentially represents the percentage chance of a particular outcome. The shift in the betting favorite comes as Harris has also overtaken Trump in many national polls, becoming the leader on the Real Clear Politics polling average for the first time on Monday. That lead represents the first time the presumed Democratic ticket has had the advantage since September 11 of last year, when Biden a 44.5% to 44.3% advantage. Neither the Trump nor Harris campaigns immediately responded to Fox News Digital requests for comment. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
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Walz in 2010 said plan to curb Social Security, increase retirement age was ‘very similar’ to his approach
Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, said in 2010 that his plan for Social Security was “very similar” to one that would increase the retirement age and adjust the cap on withholdings. The Harris campaign is pushing back after Fox News Digital reviewed the unearthed clip from a debate Walz participated in during his 2010 re-election campaign for Congress. The debate was on Oct. 12, 2010, and was held at Minnesota State University, Mankato. Walz, the Democratic candidate and incumbent, faced off against Independent candidate Steve Wilson and Republican Randy Demmer. HARRIS VP PICK TIM WALZ’S TOP FIVE ‘WEIRD’ MOMENTS IN THE SPOTLIGHT Wilson laid out his plan first, which discussed gradually increasing the retirement age. Walz answered after, saying his approach would be “very similar.” Harris for President spokesperson Joseph Costello, though, told Fox News Digital that Walz “does not support raising the retirement age, and in fact, Walz has repeatedly voted to protect Social Security and against GOP efforts to raise the retirement age.” During the 2010 debate, the three candidates were asked, “In regard to the federal budget deficit: what would you do about Social Security and Medicare with regard to the deficit?” WALZ BACKED ‘SANCTUARY’ POLICIES, SERVICES FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS AS GOVERNOR: ‘WIN FOR OPEN BORDERS’ Wilson, the independent candidate, answered first. “Social Security is one that we can fix, and we just have to all put on our thinking of what we’re going to have shared sacrifice… There are three different groups of people that are affected by Social Security: one, the group that are paying in; second, the ones that are ready to retire; and third, the ones that are receiving benefits,” Wilson said. Wilson said those paying into the program currently have caps on the amounts taken out of their paychecks. “If we would allow that to go a little higher, then we could bring more revenue in,” he said. Wilson then said the retirement age should be raised. “If we look at the second group, those who are retiring, if we adjusted that retirement age a little bit and give people enough warning – remember shared sacrifice, not just you getting affected, everybody,” Wilson said. Wilson then said the individuals getting benefits from Social Security should have the Cost of Living and Adjustments (COLA) amounts adjusted. On Wilson’s website, he further explained his position, which stated: “The age of retirement would gradually start to increase within three years of the deployment of the safety net. It would continue to be indexed to life expectancy over the longer term.” When it was Walz’s turn, he endorsed Wilson’s plan. “Social Security is absolutely critical. It is the greatest anti-poverty program the world’s ever seen,” he said. KAMALA HARRIS’ RUNNING MATE TIM WALZ PICTURED IN 1995 NEBRASKA MUGSHOT AFTER DUI ARREST “Social Security, as Steve Wilson said, who has very good ideas on Social Security, he’s thought about it – he’s being honest about it – he’s laid out a plan that I think is very similar to the approach that I would take in working with them on that,” Walz said. Walz, during that debate, advocated against any “partial privatization” of Social Security. He also said his family was personally affected by Social Security after his father died when he was in high school. “Social Security Survivor Benefits that were there to make sure that we had the bootstraps that we could pull ourselves up by,” he said. “They were loaned to us by Social Security. It’s a smart program.” A source familiar with Walz’s views at the time told Fox News Digital that “Walz does not support raising the retirement age now, and that is not what he suggested in this 14-year-old, misrepresented exchange.” The source said that after winning his race in 2010, Walz went on to oppose plans to raise the retirement age. In 2012, he voted against raising the age to 68; in 2012, he voted against raising the age to 70; and in 2014, he again voted against raising the retirement age to 70. When asked for comment, the Harris campaign stressed that Walz does not support raising the retirement age, and, while serving in Congress, voted against efforts to raise the retirement age. “For nearly two decades, as a governor and congressman, Walz has been a strong defender of Social Security,” Costello said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “Like the Biden-Harris Administration, he supports shoring up Social Security by having the super-wealthy pay their fair share.” Costello added: “When he was a teenager, it kept his family afloat after his dad, a veteran, passed away from lung cancer.”
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Trump to stage Mar-a-Lago press conference in ‘stark contrast’ with Harris as she avoids media
Former President Trump is holding a general news conference at Mar-a-Lago Thursday afternoon with members of the press – a move that the campaign says presents a “stark contrast” with Vice President Kamala Harris, who has avoided the media since being tapped as the Democratic presidential nominee. “I will be doing a General News Conference at 2:00 P.M. at Mar-a-Lago, Palm Beach. Thank you!” Trump posted to his Truth Social Thursday morning. A Trump campaign source told Fox News Digital that the former president and Republican presidential nominee is holding off-the-record meetings with major members of the press Thursday. 18 DAYS: KAMALA HARRIS HAS NOT HELD A PRESS CONFERENCE SINCE EMERGING AS PRESUMPTIVE DEMOCRATIC NOMINEE “President Trump wanted to address them while they were already in Palm Beach because he’s the most transparent candidate in history,” the Trump campaign source told Fox News Digital. “Meanwhile, it’s been 18 days since Kamala Harris was installed as the Democrat Nominee, and she has yet to answer a single question from the media,” the source continued. “A stark contrast!” Harris has gone 18 days without holding a formal press conference. The vice president became the de facto nominee after President Biden endorsed her on July 21 when he suspended his re-election campaign. The Democratic National Committee held a virtual roll call vote, and she was offically named the Democratic presidential nominee. Since then, Harris has been on the campaign trail, spoken at various events, and given informal remarks to reporters at various points, but has not done a formal press conference or a wide-ranging interview. She also failed to appear at the National Association of Black Journalists convention in Chicago, where Trump made headlines last week with a heated question-and-answer session, although she could make a future appearance with the group. This week, she made headlines by picking Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate, but the two have still not been questioned formally in interviews or press conferences. It’s gotten the attention of GOP vice-presidential candidate JD Vance, who has implored the media to do better on the issue and get Harris to answer questions. JD VANCE ROASTS HARRIS ON WISCONSIN TARMAC FOR AVOIDING PRESS, CALLS AIR FORCE 2 HIS ‘FUTURE PLANE’ During a Wednesday press conference in Detroit, Vance urged reporters to “show a little bit of self-awareness” and pushed Harris to “do the job of a presidential candidate” by speaking to them. “Until she does, you guys have got to stop giving her a honeymoon and pretending that she is something she isn’t,” he said. Vance on Wednesday also attempted to confront Harris over not answering reporters’ questions while both of their planes were on the tarmac of a Wisconsin airport on Wednesday. Vance told a press gaggle at Chippewa Valley Regional Airport that he was trying to get a better look at Air Force Two because it’s “going to be my plane in a few months.” The Republican told reporters that he worried Harris’ press gaggle “might get a little lonely” because Harris doesn’t answer their questions. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “Hey, guys. How are you?” Vance asked the group as he walked toward them. “I just wanted to check out my future plane, but I also wanted to go say hello to the vice president and ask her why Kamala Harris refuses… why does she refuse to answer questions from the media?” “And I also thought that the press gaggle following her might get a little lonely,” he added. “I, at least, have enough respect for you all, and for the American people you report to, to come and talk to you and to answer some questions. And so I thought her reporters might actually benefit from that as well.” Fox News Digital’s Brian Flood contributed to this report.
Walz doesn’t move needle with rural voters, data shows
Vice President Kamala Harris’ decision to tap Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate may not help the Democratic ticket capture rural voters. A Fox News Voter Analysis of the 2020 and 2022 elections shows that Walz performs similarly to President Biden among highly sought after rural voters, with Biden earning the votes of 38% of that demographic in Minnesota in the 2020 presidential election, while Walz hauled in 37% of those voters during his successful 2022 bid for re-election. Democrats will look to improve upon those numbers, with Harris and Walz hitting the ground running in the days after the Minnesota governor was added to the ticket, setting up events in crucial Midwestern swing states and looking to sell the electorate on Walz’s blue-collar bona fides. WHERE DOES TIM WALZ STAND ON ISRAEL? The campaign has made it a point to highlight his Midwestern roots and everyman persona, introducing him as “Coach Walz” during rallies in a nod to his time as a teacher and high school football coach. Harris will lean on Walz in the critical Midwestern swing states of Michigan and Wisconsin, where the Minnesota governor can point to his regional ties. “Hello, Eau Claire. Isn’t it good to have a candidate who can pronounce the name,” Walz said during a rally in rural Wisconsin on Wednesday. WALZ WAITED UNTIL LEGISLATIVE SESSION WRAPPED TO DEMAND RESIGNATION FROM DEM LAWMAKER ACCUSED OF BURGLARY But whether the Minnesota governor can help capture groups Democrats have struggled with remains a question, with the Fox News voter analysis showing that Walz also performed similarly to Biden among White voters without a college degree. During Biden’s White House bid in 2020, the president captured 45% of such voters in Minnesota, while Walz hauled in 44% during his 2022 re-election campaign in the same state. Nevertheless, Biden’s 2020 performance was enough to put him over the top in all the so-called “Blue Wall” states, with the president carrying Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin in addition to his victory in Minnesota, a feat the Harris campaign will be looking to repeat in 2024. Fox News’ voter analysis was conducted in partnership with The Associated Press and captures a picture of the American electorate as they vote. The analysis overcomes the shortcomings of traditional exit polling by tapping surveys conducted by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago and voting results from The Associated Press, capturing the entire electorate, including early voters and those who voted by mail. The Harris campaign did not immediately respond to a Fox News Digital request for comment. Get the latest updates on the ongoing border crisis from the Fox News Digital immigration hub.
Harris and Walz trade fire with Trump and Vance at dueling events in battleground states fight
EAU CLAIRE, WI – Standing in front of over 15,000 supporters packed into an airport hanger at the airport in Detroit, Michigan, Vice President Kamala Harris proclaimed that “this election’s going to be a fight.” “We like a good fight,” added Harris, who rose to the top of the Democratic Party’s 2024 ticket two and a half weeks ago after President Biden suspended his re-election bid and endorsed his vice president as his successor. Hours earlier in neighboring Wisconsin, another crucial battleground state that will also likely determine the outcome of the presidential election between Harris and former President Trump, the vice president’s newly named running mate took aim at Trump. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, enjoying what seemed like a hometown crowd at a rally just an hour from his own state, spoke to a sea of supporters – over 12,000 who had waited in line for hours on the roads and farm fields of mostly rural northwest Wisconsin to see Harris and her running mate. KAMALA HARRIS AND HER NEWLY NAMED RUNNING MATE KICK OFF A BATTLEGROUND STATE SWING Walz charged that the former president “sees the world differently than we see it. He has no understanding of service. Because he’s too busy serving himself again and again and again.” “This guy weakens our country to strengthen his own hands. He mocks our laws. He sows chaos and division among the people. And that’s to say nothing of the job he did as president,” Walz argued. Walz, a former high school teacher and football coach before entering politics, showcased his Midwestern roots as he told the “Packers and Badgers fans” in the crowd that he once coached his team to a state championship and touted that he was the “top gun” three years running at the trap shoot during his dozen years representing a mostly rural red-leaning district from southern Minnesota in Congress. KAMALA HARRIS AND HER NEWLY NAMED RUNNING MATE KICK OFF A BATTLEGROUND STATE SWING Hours earlier, Trump aimed to paint Harris and Walz as ultra-liberals as he called into Fox News’ “Fox and Friends” for an interview. “You know, nobody knew how radical left she was, but he’s a smarter version of her, if you want to know the truth,” Trump claimed in his Wednesday interview. “He’s probably about the same as Bernie Sanders. He’s probably more so than Bernie Sanders.” And the former president argued that “this is a ticket that would want this country to go communist immediately, if not sooner.” Trump’s team was planning on painting the Democratic ticket as extreme left-leaning regardless of whom the vice president chose as her running mate, a source in Trump’s campaign told Fox News. But Harris’ naming on Tuesday of Walz, a moderate congressman who shifted to a more progressive governor, over more moderate running mate finalists Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania and Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona seemed like a gift to Trump’s team. “I could not be more thrilled,” Trump said regarding the choice of Walz as running mate. “I was shocked when, when it came down to the final two, that she didn’t pick Shapiro. I was very surprised.” But the naming of a running mate has been lucrative for the Harris campaign, which highlighted that it had hauled in $36 million in fundraising in the 24 hours since the Walz announcement. At the rally, Walz once again argued that Trump and running mate Sen. JD Vance of Ohio “are creepy and weird as hell.” Vance, at a dueling campaign event just miles away, pushed back on the “weird” label, saying he and Trump are “normal guys who want to make this country great.” In a viral moment, Vance appeared to try and troll the vice president, as he approached Air Force Two at Chippewa Valley Regional Airport, where the senator’s campaign plane was also parked. “I figured that I would come by and get a good look at the plane because hopefully it’s going to be my plane in a few months,” Vance said in front of Air Force Two. And once again pointing out that Harris has yet to sit for a major interview or hold a press conference in the two and a half weeks since she replaced Biden at the top of the Democrats’ national ticket, Vance told reporters, “I also thought you guys may get lonely, because the VP doesn’t answer questions from reporters.” Vance also took aim at Walz, who served nearly a quarter-century in the National Guard, for what he claimed was “stolen valor,” as the Trump campaign launched a full-frontal assault on the governor, accusing him of misrepresenting his rank, his service and charging he abandoned his unit on the eve of its deployment to Iraq. The charge, if substantiated, could be explosive, as Trump co-campaign manager Chris LaCivita well knows. He was the mastermind 20 years ago behind the “Swift Boat Veterans for Truth” campaign that aimed to discredit Vietnam War veteran and Purple Heart recipient Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts ahead of his narrow 2004 presidential election loss to GOP incumbent George W. Bush. But Vance himself never served in combat. While Vance was deployed to the war in Iraq as a Marine, he worked in the public affairs department while on his deployment. And Trump over the years has faced well-documented allegations that as a young man he dodged the Vietnam War draft by claiming to have bone spurs in his feet, which sidetracked him from service. It’s no surprise that Harris and Walz so far this week have held rallies in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan, with Vance holding events nearby to stay in close proximity. The three states make up the so-called “Blue Wall” that Democrats reliably won in presidential elections for nearly a quarter-century before Trump narrowly carried them in capturing the White House eight years ago. But in 2020, Biden won back all three states with razor-thin margins as he defeated Trump, and the states remain extremely competitive
Crucial battleground states shift toward Harris after Biden drops out: forecasters
Vice President Kamala Harris is gaining ground in several key battleground states that are likely to determine the result of the 2024 presidential election. Election forecasters at the Cook Political Report and the Center for Politics say poll averages have shifted in Harris’ favor by roughly 3 points. Polls in three states have also shifted toward Democrats, with Georgia moving from “lean Republican” to “toss up,” while Minnesota and New Hampshire shifted from “lean Democratic” to “likely Democratic.” Harris has gained significant ground on former President Trump since President Biden withdrew from the race, with multiple polls now showing her ahead of Trump in the general election. While Democratic enthusiasm has surged since Harris became the party’s nominee, many political analysts say the honeymoon period is likely to wear off. Harris is already facing heavy criticism for her lack of transparency to the press, and she has yet to take questions from reporters in the 18 days since Biden dropped out. HARRIS LAPS TRUMP IN CASH DASH THANKS TO FUNDRAISING SURGE KAMALA HARRIS SUPPORTERS UNSURE WHEN ASKED ABOUT VP’S POLICY ACCOMPLISHMENTS She has been busy on the campaign trail, spoken at various events, and given informal remarks to reporters at various points, but hasn’t done a formal press conference or wide-ranging interview since Biden’s withdrawal. She also failed to appear at the National Association of Black Journalists’ convention in Chicago, where Trump made headlines last week with a heated question-and-answer session, although she could make a future appearance with the group. This week, she made headlines by picking Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate, but the two have still not been questioned formally in interviews or press conferences. It’s gotten the attention of GOP vice-presidential candidate, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio. KAMALA HARRIS’ TREATMENT OF STAFF UNDER SCRUTINY AS REPORTS OF POOR OFFICE CULTURE RESURFACE Vance called out the media for their lack of aggression towards Harris. Speaking at a rally in Detroit, he urged reporters to “show a little bit of self-awareness” and called on Harris to “do the job of a presidential candidate” by speaking to them. Trump himself has accused Harris of hiding behind her teleprompter even as Biden “hid in his basement.” Fox News’ Brian Flood contributed to this report.