In all seriousness, I applaud Democrat presidential candidate Kamala Harris for sitting down with Fox News anchor Bret Baier on Wednesday evening for a one-on-one interview. Granted, it's pretty late in the game to be doing so given we're less than three weeks from Election Day, but it's obvious Harris's struggling campaign needed a jolt.
The fact Harris herself is a vapid, demagogic leftist should disqualify her from being a serious presidential candidate (heck, she was drummed out of the 2020 Democrat primary before the Iowa caucuses because she preferred to appeal to uber online lefties). However, if she has legitimately moderated her far left positions from 2020 and thus could coherently explain why, there are enough undecided voters (and perhaps Republicans disaffected by the MAGA movement) who could potentially be had. And in a race that is as close as this 2024 POTUS contest, there's a chance she can make up ground.
But as Erick Erickson points out, she likely failed to meet those objectives.
(Harris) does not really understand her target audience, i.e., Republican voters who do not like Trump but are not warmed up to her. That is why the interview did not work. She needed to reassure those voters, and she missed that opportunity.
Now, after the fact, we know her handlers tried to cut the interview short, and she showed up late. They clearly had second thoughts about the interview but could not cancel it after ridiculing Trump for canceling on CNBC.
The reality is that the campaign and Harris personally have terribly prepared for tough interviews. She had CBS News edit her answers, but Baier was not willing to do that. Harris, outside of bubble wrap, breaks.
Again, it is crucial to understand why she broke down here. It was not because you, who are a diehard supporter of Donald Trump, hated her answers. It was because she could not offer reassurances to Republican voters who hate Trump but are unsure about her.
This could also serve as a warning to Minnesota Republicans looking to seize the majority in the MN House. There are plenty of independent voters and perhaps a handful of moderate Dems who were abhorred by the radical legislation to come out of the previous two Minnesota legislative sessions. As such, GOP candidates competing in first ring suburban districts represented by DFL reps need to understand that running to the fringe of the right wing may not be a winning strategy.
So for those Republicans who were jumping around like poo flinging monkeys over what you perceived was a poor performance by a trailing Harris, I express the sentiments of Han Solo when Luke Skywalker expressed overexuberance upon taking out a couple of enemy ships:
As with any Republican in a good position to win, never underestimate their ability to screw up a good thing.
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