Harris could present a new challenge for Netanyahu: From the Politics Desk

Welcome to the online version of From the policy deskevening bulletin that brings you the latest reporting and analysis from the campaign trail, the White House and Capitol Hill from the NBC News Politics team.

In today’s edition, senior foreign affairs correspondent Andrea Mitchell examines the new dynamic between Vice President Kamala Harris and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Plus, we look at how JD Vance is doing in his first full week as Donald Trump’s defense aide.

Sign up here to receive this newsletter in your inbox every weekday.

Harris could present a new challenge for Netanyahu

By Andrea Mitchell

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in Washington expecting a platform for Gaza policy.

Instead, he has focused much of the attention in the US on President Joe Biden’s decision to end his campaign — and, at least recently, more than the new Democratic front-runner, Vice President Kamala Harris Biden, who has focused more on how Israel is waging war and causing devastating civilian casualties. up to

When the Israeli leader arrived at the White House for the Oval Office meeting he had been seeking for more than three years, the price was the second meeting to hear the complaints of American hostage families. They have already called his visit “political theater” and said that he should have stayed in Israel to bring his loved ones back home.

A wily Israeli politician may have gone too far in openly trying to sway the US election. After maneuvering, he will be invited by the Speaker of the Republic House Addressing the Congress – the fourth unseen by a foreign head of state – he Made a side trip to Mar-a-Lago Trump sat in silence during a televised taping Friday as he called Harris a “radical leftist” and “destructive,” adding that he didn’t know how a person who was Jewish could vote for him.

Harris’ husband, Doug Emhoff, is Jewish and has spoken out against the rise of anti-Semitism around the United States. Netanyahu also did not object to hard-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir endorsing the candidacy of former President Donald Trump this week, a breach of protocol.

As for Harris, who met Netanyahu only once when he visited Israel as a senator in 2017, he demonstrated his political toughness. in their first face-to-face encounter. After his meeting, Harris – not his Israeli guest – gave a brief summary of the talks. He appeared on television to declare his commitment to Israel’s defense, but stressed that the war must end because of the catastrophic civilian toll. A senior Israeli official later criticized the vice president anonymously to reporters, accusing him of overemphasizing the importance of ending the war.

But in the end, Netanyahu may have the upper hand over the rare American politician he knows so little about. Harris’ approach to balancing military objectives with hostage rescue is more in line with public opinion in the US and Israel than that of the veteran Israeli leader.

Vance is spending his first week on the GOP ticket playing defense

By Matt Dixon, Henry J. Gomez, Allan Smith, and Garrett Haake

Senator JD Vance didn’t have much of a honeymoon.

The Ohio Republican had to jockey for attention in the first week of the campaign as Trump’s running mate with a jolt atop the Democratic ticket.

Much of the noise around Vance ranged from distracting to unpleasant. Progressives attacked his nearly 3-year-old comments “childless cat ladies” – a criticism she addressed to Harris, a stepmother of two children. Experts pointed to polling data that suggested many voters were still not sold on Vance. Others engaged in unfounded speculation about whether Trump regretted his choice as vice president.

Meanwhile, left-leaning activists and internet personalities have been bashing Vance on social media, mostly ignoring Trump in the process. And Harris’ fledgling White House campaign has focused particularly sharply on the No. 2 candidate on the GOP ticket. A campaign news headline Friday attacked Vance for his anti-abortion views, calling him a “reptile.”

With an abundance of positive news, two of the best opportunities for a presidential campaign to make a splash with voters are the nominating and the nominating conventions. For example, a poll conducted shortly after Biden chose Harris as his running mate in 2020 found that the majority of voters approved the choiceboosts their campaign.

But a New York Times/Siena survey A count of registered voters after last week’s Republican National Convention found that 38% of respondents — a majority — had a somewhat or very unfavorable opinion of Vance. Early opinions are more positive for 2016 Republican vice presidential nominee Mike Pence He earned a net positive rating in a Gallup poll on time.

A Republican strategist, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to provide candid assessment, said Vance is in danger of violating the nominee’s core requirement: “The No. 1 rule of being VP is do no harm.”

“It goes from Double-A baseball to the major leagues,” the strategist said. “There is an adjustment period. Some can handle it, and some can’t.”

More →

That’s all for the Policy Desk for now. If you have feedback – like it or not – send us an email politicsnewsletter@nbcuni.com

If you are a fan, please share with anyone and everyone. They can register here.