Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz expressed support for anti-Israel protesters during a radio interview Thursday, saying they were protesting “for all the right reasons” and advocating increasing pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to achieve Palestinian statehood.
In an interview with Michigan radio station WCMU, Walz, the current governor of Minnesota, spoke about how the Harris-Walz administration will differ from the Biden administration in resolving Israel’s conflict with Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
“We cannot allow what happened in Gaza to happen again,” he said. “The Palestinian people have every right to life and freedom. We must continue to use our leverage to move towards a two-state solution.”
Walz stressed the urgency of the situation and called on Netanyahu’s government to move toward peace. However, he also recognized Israel’s right to self-defense after the Oct. 7 attacks, calling the incident “horrible violence against the people of Israel.” He stressed that the United States remains a strong ally of Israel, saying, “The United States will always support this.”
In Michigan, where anti-Israel protests have been prominent due to the state’s large Arab population, Walz supported the protesters, saying: “I think people in Michigan are speaking out for all the right reasons. This is a humanitarian crisis. It can’t go on like this.”
Walz concluded his speech by calling for a ceasefire and the return of the hostages, saying that “a sustainable two-state solution is the only way forward.”
Matt Brooks, executive director of the Republican Jewish Coalition, criticized Walz’s comments and accused the Democratic leadership of pandering to a “vile anti-Semitic base.” He condemned the party’s response to anti-Israel protests, saying, “It is shameful and appalling that the top leaders of the current Democratic Party cannot firmly and directly push back against their vile anti-Semitic base.”
Brooks accused Harris and Walz of putting “partisan politics before the safety of the Jewish community” and vowed that the American people would reject their policies in the upcoming election.
Cursor previously wrote that Harris responded to Trump about “Israel’s demise.”
