What Tensions in the Middle East Could Mean for Harris and Trump

With a month left until the presidential election, Kamala Harris and Donald Trump have turned to issues of foreign policy on the campaign trail as tensions in the Middle East rise. On Washington Week With The Atlantic, panelists join to discuss how potential intensification of the conflict could change the dynamics of the election.

President Joe Biden continues to support Israel’s right to defend itself—with the U.S. joining Israel in shooting down Iranian missiles this week—but he has cautioned against actions that would further expand the war. Although Biden has been a “very comfortable figure for Israel” over the course of his administration, the Israelis “have big question marks” about Harris and Trump, Franklin Foer said last night.

Until recently, both candidates’ campaigns have not centered on issues of foreign policy, with topics such as the economy taking a sharper focus. Whether Harris and Trump begin to outline specific policy aims for their approach to the Middle East as Election Day draws nearer remains to be seen.

Joining the editor in chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, to discuss this and more: Peter Baker, the chief White House correspondent at The New York Times; Francesca Chambers, a White House correspondent at USA Today; Franklin Foer, a staff writer at The Atlantic; and David Ignatius, a foreign-affairs columnist at The Washington Post.

Watch the full episode here.