Pittsburgh – Pro-Palestinian voters A Pittsburgh progressive speaking to The Post said Kamala Harris' candidacy could be ruined in the battleground state of Pennsylvania.
The Harris campaign deployed volunteers on Saturday for a day of door-knocking in the Steel City, where the vice president stayed over the weekend to prepare for Tuesday's debate. But protesters confronted them, shouting slogans and chanting “Free Palestine” outside his hotel.
Volunteers campaigning for Kamala had difficulty getting the vice president's message across to at least one voter, a man who introduced himself to the Post as Kevin B.
As Democratic door knockers approached Kevin's home in Pittsburgh's Bloomfield neighborhood, they noticed a poster of a Palestinian flag in the window.
When asked if he plans to vote for Harris, Kevin said he still isn't sure — but when asked to name his most important issue, he said “Israel” without hesitation.
“The main reason why I will not vote for Democrats is the Israel issue,” the 30-year-old EMT told The Post, referring to the Israel-Hamas war. “We are not only taking money from ourselves and our citizens to pay for the genocide of a foreign government, we are supporting it.”
“I don't like the Democrats' approach either,” responded Sonia, one of Harris' volunteers. “But it's the lesser of two evils,” she added.
The No Ceasefire No Vote campaign is organising voters Reject their support for Harris in the November election — unless either a permanent ceasefire is reached or the vice president commits to an arms embargo on Israel.
Over 60,000 Pennsylvania Democrats in April Voted She ran against President Joe Biden in the state primary at the urging of the pro-Palestinian group Uncommitted PA.
Biden won only Pennsylvania in 2020 80,000 votes,
In 2024, Kevin could be one of the deciding figures who will help determine the direction of Pennsylvania's 19 electoral votes. Undecided about Harris, he is considering casting his vote for Green Party candidate Jill Stein, who supports a ban on handguns.
A poll conducted in late August found that 25% of Muslim voters in Pennsylvania plan to vote for the BJP. clay cup for drinking beerWhile 37% would support Harris and 19% are undecided.
Although Harris acknowledged that the Israeli invasion of Gaza “too many citizensHe also maintained his support for Israel's right to self-defense in the presidential debate with former President Donald Trump on Tuesday night.
During the debate, the vice president reiterated that Israel has the right to defend itself, though “how it does so matters,” and he again called for a two-state solution in which Israelis and Palestinians would be protected “equally.”
Israel has killed more than 1,000 people. 40,000 Palestinians This is the biggest attack since the terrorist attack carried out by Hamas on October 7, in which 1,200 Israeli civilians were killed and more than 240 people were taken hostage.
Today, about 100 people remain imprisoned in GazaBut many of the remaining hostages are believed to be dead. In August, the US approved the sale $20 billion Will send fighter planes and other weapons to Israel.
“How long do people have to put up with this impoverishment?” Kevin asked. “We are suffering as a country with rising costs of living, food, gas, and we are funding the genocide of people.”
“Democrats want to push this progressive narrative, take the moral high ground with Republicans on gun control, voting rights, Black Lives Matter,” he told the Post. “But do they really believe in those things? Or do they think this stance will get them votes?”
Kevin pointed to the 2016 Democratic Party when they “dropped out progressive candidate Bernie Sanders” in favor of Hillary Clinton.
She also pointed to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), a member of the left-wing Squad, who recently endorsed Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein as “a bastion of her own personal identity.”violent” To take away votes from Democrats.
“They’re trying to get people to vote for them,” Kevin said, lamenting that the party’s game for getting elected means pressuring progressives to vote against their conscience.
that game might involve accepting Endorsement Former Republican Vice President Dick Cheney, the chief architect of the Iraq War, whom Kevin says is a “f–king war criminal.”
“It's not the people's fault. It's your fault as the Democratic Party that you yourself disrupted the election,” he said.
At one point during the conversation with Kevin, another Harris volunteer named Linda attempted to discuss abortion rights.
He said, “I'm pro-choice and I'm very disappointed by the overturning of Roe v. Wade,” but that “the world hasn't fallen apart” under Donald Trump.
Linda later told the Post that she knew her idea wouldn't change Kevin's mind, but she's holding out hope for others in Pennsylvania to follow his path.
“I was disappointed at the time. But there will be other undecided voters who will support Harris,” she said.
