Happy Wednesday!

Today’s Brew opens with a prayer for the five U.S. service members and two contractors injured in a rocket attack Monday on the al-Asad air base in Iraq. The Defense Department blames Iran-backed groups for the attack, which it calls a “dangerous escalation” by the Iranians. The incident comes as Israel awaits a promised retaliation for killing a Hamas leader in Iraq last month.

We pray for the recovery of the injured and the continued safety of all U.S. military personnel in the region.

And our leaders. More on that in a second.

Did Kamala Cave to the Hamas Wing of the Democratic Party?

We mentioned in yesterday’s Afternoon Tea that Republicans, including J.D. Vance, have accused Kamala Harris of caving to the Hamas wing of the Democratic Party in picking Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate over Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, who is Jewish. Now, even liberal CNN commentator Van Jones agrees this was the case.

“How much of what just happened was caving in to some of these darker parts in the party?” he asked aloud, namely, the “anti-Jewish bigots” he says have “gotten marbled into this party.”

Van Jones admits that Kamala picking Walz was her "caving in to some of these darker parts in the party" in terms of appeasing "anti-Jewish bigots" that have "gotten marbled into this party." pic.twitter.com/UTspmYkFfF

— Nicholas Fondacaro (@NickFondacaro) August 6, 2024

Perhaps Harris just personally connected more with Walz, or her gut was telling her that Sen. John Fetterman was right about avoiding the ambitious Shapiro. But with the very real antisemitic sentiment within the Democratic Party, she will have answer for the choice. And explaining herself is not exactly one of Harris’s strengths.

Politico reports that Shapiro, in effect, bowed out of the running for consideration. His team didn’t think his interview with Harris went well, and Shapiro called her people to say he was “struggling with the decision” to give up his current job as governor.” Is that true, or just Shapiro’s team leaking to try and make it look like the decision was his?

Jones also noted that the Republicans were “biting their nails down to their knuckles” over the possibility that Shapiro would be chosen, as he would have increased the odds of the Democrats winning Pennsylvania, a key swing state, in November.

He could be right, judging from Donald Trump’s initial reaction to the selection of Walz: “THANK YOU!”

Vance offered a stronger take on the situation. One advantage of having a bestselling author as your running mate? Lines like this:

They make an interesting tag team because of course Tim Walz allowed rioters to burn down Minneapolis in the summer of 2020, and the few that got caught, Kamala Harris helped bail out of jail.

Speaking of Trump, the GOP nominee announced Tuesday that he’s doing a “major interview” with Elon Musk next Monday night.

Why “Tampon Tim”?

Immediately after Tim Walz’s selection was announced, the meme “Tampon Tim” began flooding social media and trending on X. Not exactly “Honest Abe,” is it? This is a reference to a bill Walz signed last year requiring tampons for “menstruating students” to be installed in school bathrooms, including those for boys.

“Not all students who menstruate are female,” the bill’s sponsor, state Rep. Sandra Feist, said at the time. “We need to make sure all students have access to these products.”

That sounds like a question for Walz at the upcoming vice presidential debate: “Do you agree that ‘not all students who menstruate are female’? Put more simply: Can men menstruate?”

Expect Walz to Be Accused of Abandoning His Troops Before Deployment

Walz also will likely be grilled in the coming weeks over his military service. He spent 24 years in the National Guard, and for that he should be honored. However, as the Daily Wire reported, during his 2018 campaign, former National Guard members accused him of retiring in 2005 when his unit got word they would be deployed to Iraq.

In an open letter posted on Facebook, retired Command Sergeants Major Thomas Behrends and Paul Herr said:

For Tim Walz to abandon his fellow soldiers and quit when they needed experienced leadership most is disheartening. It dishonors those brave American men and women who did answer their nation’s call and who continue to serve, fight and unfortunately die in harm’s way for us.

Walz fought back, saying, “After completing 20 years of service in 2001, I re-enlisted to serve our country for an additional four years following Sept. 11 and retired the year before my battalion was deployed to Iraq in order to run for Congress.”

There’s just one problem with that explanation, say Behrends and Herr: According to his separation paperwork, Walz had signed up for six more years, not four.

The post goes into the weeds about Walz’s departure. Expect some of those weeds to be pulled.

Ladders for Illegals Over Safety for Americans

Here’s another line from Walz that’s going to give the campaign headaches. Illegal immigration is the #2 issue on the minds of voters, after the economy. Yet just the other day, Walz quipped to CNN:

“(Trump) talks about this wall. I always say, let me know how high it is. If it’s 25 feet, then I’ll invest in the thirty-foot ladder factory.”

Again, he didn’t say that in 2016. He said it in 2024, after some 10 million illegal immigrants have flooded our country during Harris’ tenure, after the decimation of border towns, the overwhelming of cities like New York and Chicago, numerous rapes and murders of women and small children at the hands of illegal immigrants, and the Department of Homeland Security admitting they’ve let at least 99 illegals on the terror watch list loose inside our borders.

Apparently, Walz is itching for more of that kind of action.

Iran-Linked Pakistani Charged With Plotting to AssassinateTrump, Other Government Officials

A Pakistani national with ties to Iran has been charged with plotting to assassinate a government official or political figure on U.S. soil. Sources tell CNN the targets were Donald Trump and other current and former government officials. Asif Merchant, 46, arrived in the U.S. in April, and was planning to work with a hit man to carry out an attack in late August or early September.

Asif was arrested in July. This arrest led to increased security around Trump (for all the good that did).

The FBI says it has not found any connection between Merchant and the attempt on Trump’s life that took place on July 13 in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Tulsi on TSA Watchlist After Knocking Harris and Deep State? Air Marshall Whistleblowers Say Yes.

The Biden-Harris administration has put former Democratic presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard on a watchlist of suspected domestic terrorists, and has been tailing her on her recent flights, according to air marshal whistleblowers.

The Air Marshall National Council (AMNC) claims Gabbard was added to the DHS “Quiet Skies” program one day after she spoke her mind about newly minted Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and the “National Security State.” Quiet Skies is supposed to protect traveling Americans from suspected domestic terrorists. However, it’s already been weaponized against J6 defendants and, according to the whistleblowers, is now being used against top Biden administration foes.

The first one. Here you go. More to come.

EXCLUSIVE – Federal Air Marshal Whistleblowers Report Tulsi Gabbard Actively Under Surveillance via Quiet Skies Program – https://t.co/sEYREuIQJJ@LaboscoSonya @wmahoney5 @RealStevefriend @KyleSeraphin @elonmusk

— Air Marshal National Council (@FAMS_AMNC) August 4, 2024

AMNC Executive Director Sonya LaBosco says Gabbard has had two explosive-detection canine teams, one transportation security specialist (explosives), one plainclothes TSA supervisor, and three federal air marshals assigned to every flight she boards.

And where’s she been flying to? Oklahoma, to take command of the 1-354 BN — a National Guard Drill Sergeant battalion that supports the Army’s Initial Entry Training mission.

I am grateful to serve.

I recently took command of the 1-354 BN in Oklahoma — a Drill Sergeant battalion that supports the Army’s Initial Entry Training mission. I just got off duty, and am grateful to serve with and support excellent NCOs who have chosen this path. God Bless… pic.twitter.com/YtGn0bnYQm

— Tulsi Gabbard 🌺 (@TulsiGabbard) August 5, 2024

We’re still waiting for an explanation from the TSA, DHS, or White House about why they’ve got a former presidential candidate and National Guard officer under surveillance as a domestic terrorist.

Along The Stream

Stream contributor Raymond Ibrahim is back with “Pope Francis Finally Condemns Olympics’ Anti-Christian Mockery (to Please Muslims).”

If you missed it: The email system for The Stream is down. While we’re making progress on the situation, it could be a few more days before we’re back in business. If you want to reach us, please contact us through our Facebook page.

 

Al Perrotta is The Stream’s Washington bureau chief, coauthor with John Zmirak of The Politically Incorrect Guide to Immigration, and coauthor of the counterterrorism memoir Hostile Intent: Protecting Yourself Against Terrorism.