The problem was not so much with Dana Bash, though she let Kamala off the hook too often. The problem was that the Vice President kept hiding behind Biden’s coattails and spoke mostly in generalities. She kept saying, “My values haven’t changed.” Dana should have asked, “Well then, what are your policies for carrying them out?” It would have been telling if Dana had used a few hard-hitting questions instead of the puffballs she tossed out.
Kamala gave up on the Green New Deal, she said, because Biden’s new climate plans coopted most of it. Well, in fact they didn’t, and a good interviewer would have questioned that. The whole point of the exercise seemed to reinforce what she had already established at the DNC—her good-guy, middle-class likeability. There she did make an excellent acceptance speech, hitting all the right notes. But personally she blew it for me when she reinforced the Biden arms for Israel policy while calling blandly for a cease-fire. And sadly, there was nothing on abortion.
So thanks for an hour of apple-polishing and raising questions that got pro-forma answers. CNN is more disgusting by the day; how many inane commercials kept interrupting this unproductive show? Kamala couldn’t even give straightforward answers to her role in the border security mess. She babbled on about price gouging and giving first-time home buyers $25,000 in down payment support. How’s that going to help lower inflation? She sometimes sounded like Tim Walz who when challenged about his DUI arrest appeared evasive. And what was he doing there at all?
The Harris campaign has to do better than this.
The Harris campaign is doing just fine. Specifics are bad provoking gotcha responses from political opponents and the media. Ultimately the campaign, as usual, is about who voters have more confidence in to confront unanticipated problems.
I’m not expecting any interview by any news service of either side to be any different. The candidates will say what will get them elected and the interviewers will let them off the hook. Coincidentally, last night I watched the episode of The Newsroom where Jeff Daniels loses the chance to host a debate among the Republican candidates because the RNC guy realizes that Daniels is going to insist that they actually answer his questions(!). It’s sad. But this year I don’t care, as long as Trump loses.
Harris can only get elected if she can attract conservative leaning swing voters (independents) in the critical states. She isn’t going to say anything that will put them off. She can’t risk saying things that would motivate those voters to vote for her opponent.
I, along with many others, could care less about the interviews candidates give. They say what they think will help get them elected. People know that. I have not watched any debates and will not. I abhor Biden’s support of Israel and although I believe Harris will continue that support, I will vote for her (nose held) in hopes that tRump loses.
Hmmmm! Lot’s of comments this time. I disagree with you about the interview. She said what she needed to say to get it over with. I really didn’t need to hear any details from her because I READ. And about abortion… The woman has been on the campaign trail ad nauseam…talking about her abortion views….and about the war in Gaza…She can’t get out ahead of Biden on this issue just yet since she still has her day job. I give her a big pass on the interview. The only thing I noticed that seemed odd was that her posture was terrible. She should have sat up straight. Optics are important.