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Washington Roundup: Harris and Latino voters; Whitmer video controversy; Oklahoma Bibles classroom directive

Beatrice Cruz of Arizona holds a sign in support of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy after a hearing on the DACA program, outside the federal courthouse in Houston June 1, 2023. (OSV News photo/Adrees Latif, Reuters)

WASHINGTON (OSV News) — Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, vowed to strengthen President Joe Biden’s asylum crackdown at the border, but didn’t specify her plans for Dreamers in a Univision town hall Oct. 10.

Oklahoma State Superintendent Ryan Walters amended a request for Bibles in public school classrooms Oct. 7 that critics said appeared tailored to include only one sold by former President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, D-Mich., made a controversial video with a podcaster Oct. 10 that some Catholics argued appeared to mock Communion.

Harris courts Latino voters in Univision town hall

In a town hall hosted by the Spanish-language television station Univision taped at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Harris reiterated her support for a bipartisan border security bill Congress rejected earlier this year, but she did not offer specifics on a plan for “Dreamers,” or those immigrants who were brought into the country as children without legal status and are beneficiaries of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA.

During her previous bid for the presidency in 2019, Harris pledged to take executive actions on immigration as president including one that would give 2 million Dreamers a path to citizenship and shield more than 6 million immigrants without legal status from deportation. Harris has not repeated that call during her current campaign, and did not shed light on whether she would still attempt to do so through executive action if elected.

“So our Dreamers — this is again a very big example of what the price is to pay for our broken immigration system,” she said, adding they “should not have to live in fear but should have the ability to be on a path to earn their citizenship.”

In another notable moment, Harris was asked to name three virtues of her opponent Trump.

“I think Donald Trump loves his family, and I think that’s very important. I think family is one of the most important things that we can prioritize,” she said. But Harris added, “But I don’t really know him, to be honest with you. I only met him one time, on the debate stage. I’ve never met him before, so I don’t really have much more to offer you.”

Trump is scheduled to appear in his own Univision town hall on Oct. 16.

Oklahoma state superintendent amends request for Bibles in public school classrooms

In June, Walters issued a directive requiring schools in Oklahoma to have a Bible in their classrooms and to teach from it.

But an Oct. 4 report from The Oklahoman daily newspaper said that bid documents to purchase those books showed vendors must meet certain specifications: Bibles must be the King James Version–the modern iteration of which is primarily used by protestants–and must include copies of the Pledge of Allegiance, Declaration of Independence, U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights; and must be bound in leather or leather-like material.

Only one Bible on the market appeared to meet those parameters, the documents said: the $60 “God Bless the USA Bible” Trump is selling in partnership with country singer Lee Greenwood.

But following controversy, Politico reported Oct. 9 that the state amended its request to remove the requirement that the Bibles include U.S. historical documents to broaden options available.

In a video on X, Walers said the Bible should be taught in public school classrooms “because of its historical significance throughout this nation’s history,” and blamed what he called the “fake news media” for the controversy.

“The left-wing media hates Donald Trump so much, and they hate the Bible so much, they will lie and go to any means necessary to stop this initiative from happening,” Walters said.

But the altered criteria would allow the state to choose an array of options of Bibles retailing for about $20 each, according to multiple reports.

Whitmer’s video with podcaster sparks criticism from some Catholics

Whitmer was criticized by some Catholics on social media over a video in which she fed chips to a podcaster in an apparent attempt to promote her interview on that platform. While the video resembled a viral social media trend, some Catholics argued it appeared to mock the sacrament of Communion.

Whitmer’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The video appears to be a nod to a viral video trend similar to one made by television host Stephen Colbert and actor Jeremy Allen White, in which one participant is awkwardly fed by another. The video featured the same music as many of the others, including the one made by Colbert, who is Catholic. But some Catholics argued the video appeared to mock the sacrament of Communion.

“Many Catholics are going to see this as mocking the communion rail,” Tim Graham, executive editor of the conservative website NewsBusters wrote on X.

But Catholic author and podcaster Gloria Purvis wrote on X, “Are Catholics that easily duped? Do you all really think Gretchen Whitmer is out to disrespect Catholics? There cannot possibly be any other reason like say a viral Tik Tok trend?”

Plank captioned the video, in part, “Chips aren’t just delicious, the CHIPS Act is a game-changer for U.S. tech and manufacturing, boosting domestic production of semiconductors to reduce reliance on foreign suppliers! Donald Trump would put that at risk.”

Kate Scanlon is a national reporter for OSV News covering Washington. Follow her on X (formerly Twitter) @kgscanlon.

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