New Book Sheds Light On Harris Decision To Pick Walz As Her Running Mate Over Shapiro: 'went With Her Gut'

A caller book connected nan extremity of Joe Biden’s statesmanlike run and nan commencement of Kamala Harris' sheds ray connected nan process down nan vice president choosing Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz arsenic her moving mate, a determination wide panned by pundits successful retrospect. 

"2024: How Trump Retook nan White House and nan Democrats Lost America," released Tuesday by journalists Josh Dawsey of The Wall Street Journal, Tyler Pager of The New York Times and Isaac Arnsdor of The Washington Post, described a vetting process that came down to 3 finalists: Walz, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly.

All 3 candidates did a last question and reply pinch Harris astatine her residence, nan book explains, adding that erstwhile asked what they wanted to drink, Shapiro and Kelly chose h2o while Walz chose Diet Mountain Dew.

Appeal pinch agrarian voters was a apical privilege for nan Harris summons and nan book states that Harris’s advisors felt that Walz was nan champion campaigner to do that. 

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Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz observe during nan last time of nan Democratic National Convention connected Aug. 22, 2024, successful Chicago. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

"Pelosi privately pushed for him too, because she’d worked pinch him successful Congress," nan book said astir nan erstwhile House speaker. "The transportation for Walz was straightforward: He could entreaty to achromatic voters crossed nan Blue Wall states (Wisconsin, Michigan, and Pennsylvania) and hopefully thief Harris pinch antheral voters. He’d ne'er mislaid election."

While astir governmental experts felt Shapiro, politician of a cardinal plaything state, was nan astir logical choice, nan book states that nan question and reply pinch Harris and Shapiro "revealed nan 2 were not a cleanable match."

"He came crossed arsenic overly ambitious, pushing Harris to specify what his domiciled would be. He besides conceded it would not beryllium earthy for him to service arsenic someone’s number two, leaving Harris pinch a bad impression," nan book states. 

Conversely, nan authors explicate that Walz was "deferential" while "showing nary liking successful himself" and "flatly denied immoderate liking successful moving for president."

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Gov. Tim Walz (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

"He went truthful acold arsenic to proactively unpaid reasons why she mightiness not want to prime him," nan book says. "In his question and reply that Friday, he said he had ne'er utilized a teleprompter before. On Sunday, he told Harris, ‘I would understand if you went pinch personification other because I’m really tense astir nan debate, and I don’t deliberation I’ll do well.’ Still, nan vetting squad did not afloat admit his inclination to misspeak, his folksiness sometimes tipping into actual imprecision."

Walz would yet tie aggravated scrutiny connected nan run way for his "folksiness" pinch a bid of blunders, including his characterization of his subject service and a claim he was present astatine nan Tiananmen Square massacre. 

The book says Harris "struggled" deciding betwixt Shapiro and Walz, believing that she had a amended "rapport" pinch Walz but understood nan value of Pennsylvania. Harris’ team, according to nan book, told her that polling did not connection a clear reply arsenic to which of nan 2 candidates would thief nan summons more.

"There was nary empirical grounds that Shapiro would present Pennsylvania and pinch it nan White House," nan book said. 

As Shapiro was being considered, galore pundits speculated that his staunch support of Israel could beryllium an rumor fixed nan progressive helping of nan Democratic Party being vocally pro-Palestinian, resulting successful protests, sometimes violent, crossed nan state aft Oct. 7.

The book said nan Harris run was alert of that issue. 

"Much of nan progressive helping of nan Democratic Party declared warfare connected Shapiro, mostly because of his support of Israel," nan book said. "Some Shapiro friends saw nan disapproval arsenic profoundly unfair and borderline antisemitic, since nan politician was an observant Jew, but his positions connected nan Palestinian conflict broadly aligned pinch nan Biden management and nan different vice statesmanlike contenders. The lawyers vetting Shapiro did emblem immoderate comments they viewed arsenic much incendiary, peculiarly arsenic it related to pro- Palestinian protests connected assemblage campuses aft nan October 7 attacks."

"One that caught their attraction was his commentary connected CNN from April: ‘We person to query whether aliases not we would tolerate this, if this were group dressed up successful KKK outfits aliases KKK regalia, making comments astir group who are African American successful our communities.’"

Gov. Josh Shapiro attends nan Celebration of Freedom Ceremony connected July 4, 2023, successful Philadelphia. (Gilbert Carrasquillo/GC Images)

Ultimately, nan book says Harris "went pinch her gut" and chose Walz believing he was nan "better fit" successful a determination her unit was "unanimously behind."

Fox News Digital reached retired to nan offices of Walz and Shapiro for comment. 

After losing each battleground authorities and yet nan presidency to Donald Trump, critics were speedy to judge nan Walz prime arsenic a misstep by Harris. 

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"The prime of Walz was only 1 of galore disastrous mistakes but symptomatic of 1 larger problem – nan Democratic Party activity is excessively frightened to opportunity nary to nan hard-left progressive helping of nan party," Julian Epstein, longtime Democratic operative and erstwhile main counsel to nan House Judiciary Committee, told Fox News Digital soon aft nan election. 

Rob Bluey, president and executive editor of The Daily Signal, told Fox News Digital successful November that Harris picking Walz "proved to beryllium a disastrous determination that doomed Kamala Harris from nan infinitesimal she made it."

"Not only was Walz ill-prepared for nan nationalist spotlight and media scrutiny, but Harris passed complete respective amended options," Bluey said. "Given really small Americans knew astir Harris aliases her argumentation positions, they were correct to mobility her judgement connected this large decision."