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It seems whenever I sign up for pool duty with Vice President Kamala Harris, chaos reigns in the Middle East — and today was no different.
Back in May, I traveled aboard Air Force Two with the vice president to Detroit when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu planned to invade Rafah. That same day, Hamas said it would agree to a ceasefire with Israel, but that quickly got binned. After waiting for ages in a van outside The Wright Museum in Detroit, Harris finally gave us a brief statement.
For those not in the White House Press Corps, pool reporters are the designated journalists who agree to take a day off from their regular duties to follow around either the president, vice president or their spouses and send reports to the press corp, since we cannot all be around the principal constantly.
It’s simultaneously dull work, comprising mostly sitting and waiting for the person you are following, and then transcribing whatever they say and emailing it to everyone — and occasionally exhilarating. Most importantly, it’s a way to be a good neighbor to our fellow reporters.
I already knew Tuesday was going to be busy. It’s election season — the vice presidential debate between JD Vance and Tim Walz would be on Tuesday evening and I would be going over to Virginia to cover a debate watch party. Last night, I covered Montana’s Senate debate.
Nonetheless, when I received a notification request to cover the vice president on Monday evening, I signed up, figuring it might be fun.
Almost immediately, I regretted my decision. As I arrived at the White House gates, my credential didn’t work — because, as I learned, it had just expired — which meant I had to get a provisional pass and then scurry in the pouring rain to get into the van.
Turns out that we didn’t need to rush, the vice president wasn’t going anywhere. Iran had launched a barrage of rockets into Israel. A suspected terror attack in Tel Aviv also killed at least six people. Harris was in the situation room with President Joe Biden.
Of course, us poolers (there’s ones for photo, and print) were in the dark about this, sitting in the black van that usually follows the black SUV carrying the vice president. The photographers took out their cameras to snap people filing in and out of the West Wing since we were parked outside the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, where most administration employees work.
At one point, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg walked into the West Wing, likely to discuss the aftermath of Hurricane Helene and the destruction left in its wake in the Atlantic seaboard. Meanwhile, I got briefed that Harris would make her way to North Carolina and Georgia to survey the damage.
Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, left, on Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, with President Joe Biden at the White House (AP)
Former president Donald Trump was raging on Truth Social about how the planet was on the brink of a third world war. All the while, we sat. And waited.
Finally, the vice president stepped out of the West Wing and we were off. Soon, we arrived at the Josephine Butler Parks Center, a historic building also used for weddings, where she would was conducting an interview. The White House did not disclose with whom.
Times like this make me feel almost useless since I had no scintillating details to give my colleagues, despite it being a crisis-fueled day for the vice president.
Finally, Harris elected to give us a two-minute statement.
“I condemn this attack unequivocally. I’m clear eyed, Iran is a destabilizing, dangerous force in the Middle East, and today’s attack on Israel only further demonstrates that fact,” she said, confirming she was in the Situation Room with Biden and supported Biden’s decision to shoot down Iranian rockets.
Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris walks to board Air Force Two in Las Vegas, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024, en route to Washington (AP)
“ As I have said, I will always ensure Israel has the ability to defend itself against Iran and Iran backed terrorist militias,” she said. “My commitment to the security of Israel is unwavering.”
All the while, I could not help but be reminded of how during Harris’ Democratic National Convention speech just after she got confirmed as the nominee, Harris said how she would “ensure America always has the strongest, most lethal fighting force in the world.” That comment caused her to receive some flack from the left flank in her party, alongside the fact that she has done little to differentiate herself from Biden’s unequivocal support for Israel.
Previously the debate between Walz and Vance was seen as today’s main event, but after the Iranian attacks it’s likely to be treated as an afterthought.
Nearly three hours after Harris spoke to us, the whole time spent sitting in the van waiting, we got word that our duty had finished. The vice president was off to the US Naval Observatory, and I was back into the rain, ready to see who would succeed her.
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This article was amended on the day of publication. A previous version said Iran’s strike on Israel killed six people, but this was inaccurate. The six people referred to were killed in a separate attack in Tel Aviv. It also previously called the vice president’s residence Navy One, but this was inaccurate. The vice president’s residence is called US Naval Observatory.
