How Harris would actually approach Israel, according to an insider

Over the weekend, news broke that Israel had recovered the bodies of six hostages in Gaza, including that of Israeli-American Hersh Goldberg-Polin. Vice President Kamala Harris condemned Hamas in a statement made shortly afterwards.

“From its massacre of 1,200 people to sexual violence, taking of hostages, and these murders, Hamas’ depravity is evident and horrifying,” Harris said. “The threat Hamas poses to the people of Israel — and American citizens in Israel — must be eliminated and Hamas cannot control Gaza.”

Just weeks before his body was recovered, Goldberg-Polin’s parents had spoken at the Democratic National Convention. They did so while delegates who represented “Uncommitted” voters protested that a Palestinian should be able to speak on the main stage of the convention as well. That did not come to pass.

While Harris will face numerous challenges if she wins the White House, Israel’s war in Gaza will be one of her biggest challenges. For his part, former president Donald Trump has called on Israel to “finish the job” and lambasted Jewish Americans — who overwhelmingly vote Democratic — for their support for Harris’s party. Trump even went so far as to call Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff a “crappy Jew.”

Inside Washington spoke to Halie Soifer, who worked as Harris’s national security during Harris’s first two years as a senator, this week. Soifer, now the chief executive of the Jewish Democratic Council of America, told The Independent that Harris showed a keen understanding of the unique security threats Israel faces.

“I saw this firsthand when we traveled to Israel in November 2017. She was looking at Iron Dome batteries at the time,” Soifer said. She added that Harris understands the threat Israel faces