From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, August 20, 2024
Former US envoy: Harris ‘only hope’ for convincing young Americans to support Israel
Jacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief
CHICAGO — Former US ambassador to Israel Tom Nides tells The Times of Israel that Vice President Kamala Harris can do a better job than President Joe Biden could in convincing young Americans to support Israel.
“If we have any hope whatsoever to convince the next generation to understand the importance of supporting the State of Israel, [it is] people like Kamala Harris standing up and saying to kids under 30, ‘The State of Israel needs to be supported and this fight is not with the Palestinian people,’ Nides says in an interview on the sidelines of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
“She’s not Joe Biden for all the apparent reasons. She’s an African American, Indian woman who is saying, ‘It’s good to support the security of the State of Israel. She’s a different voice, and if we hope to have a bridge the future, we’ve got to have these voices,” Nides says.
“This is not about being critical of President Biden. There’s been no more pro-Israel president than Joe Biden. But we’re now talking about passing the torch to a much different generation,” he continues.
Nides acknowledges that young Americans are increasingly moving away from supporting Israel.
“We should all recognize that we’re in a very deep hole. It’s her face and her positions on the State of Israel that are the only hope we have for turning kids under 30 back in support of the State of Israel,” Nides says separately during an event organized by the Jewish Democratic Council of America.
