Friday Insights-August 30, 2024
Harris ahead in new polls but underperforms in CNN interview.
Happy Friday and Labor Day weekend. Election Day is in 67 days.
This week offered good and bad news for Democrats. Kamala Harris now enjoys a slight national lead over Donald Trump. That is the good news. However, she also struggled in her first interview since getting the Democratic nomination. I gave her a flat “C.”
The Harris honeymoon is over. This is not to say that her campaign is collapsing or that her momentum is ending. But it is to say that the more the public sees of Harris, the more they realize that she is not a polished, experienced campaigner. It remains to be seen whether Harris’ surging popularity among low-income voters will suffer.
The interview.
Last night, CNN's Dana Bash interviewed Harris and Tim Walz. Harris was visibly nervous and over-prepared. She resorted to talking points and campaign slogans—things that work in a speech but not so much as responses in a much-watched interview.
Here is how the interview started:
BASH: Madam Vice President, Governor Walz, thank you so much for sitting down with me and bringing the bus. Bus tour is well underway here in Georgia. You have less time to make your case to voters than any candidate in modern American history. The voters are really eager to hear what your plans are. If you are elected, what would you do on day one in the White House?
HARRIS: Well, there are a number of things. I will tell you first and foremost one of my highest priorities is to do what we can to support and strengthen the middle class. When I look at the aspirations, the goals, the ambitions of the American people, I think that people are ready for a new way forward in a way that generations of Americans have been fueled by — by hope and by optimism.
I think sadly in the last decade, we have had in the former president someone who has really been pushing an agenda and an environment that is about diminishing the character and the strength of who we are as Americans — really dividing our nation. And I think people are ready to turn the page on that.
BASH: So, what would you do day one?
The interview got worse, partly because Bash asked some unfair questions, like why she did not act on some of her current policy proposals in the last three and a half years. It is difficult to expect any vice president to publicly disagree with the president and Harris dodged these questions. In doing so, however, she sounded a bit evasive.
I encourage you to read the interview transcript to understand Harris’ performance better. Hopefully, Harris will improve as the campaign continues.
What was the high point of the interview? It came during a discussion of Republicans. Here is the exchange:
BASH: Speaking of Republicans, I want to ask you about your opponent, Donald Trump. I was a little bit surprised, people might be surprised to hear that you have never interacted with him, met him face to face. That’s gonna change soon, but what I want to ask you about is what he said last month. He suggested that you happened to turn Black recently for political purposes, questioning a core part of your identity.
HARRIS: Yeah.
BASH: Any—
HARRIS: Same old, tired playbook. Next question, please. (LAUGH)
BASH: That’s it?
HARRIS: That’s it.
This is the only example of Harris directly answering a Bash question. Harris handled it beautifully.
Next Up, Presidential Debate
Things could still change, but Donald Trump will debate Kamala Harris at 9:00 p.m. Eastern in Philadelphia on September 10. The debate will likely draw a large audience, partly because of Harris’ less-than-stellar showing in her Bash interview.
Harris’ performance in her Bash interview may increase Trump’s confidence that he can easily best Harris. To do so, Trump must demonstrate that he has the temperament to serve as president again. Recent rallies and media appearances, including a bizarre Town Hall meeting moderated by former Democratic Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard (HI). Trump couldn’t seem to shut up.
In response to a question on in vitro fertilization (IVF), Trump offered this gem:
And as you know, we have no taxes on a thing called tips. You know that? And I said, tell me, we did three things. We did that, and we did no tax for seniors on Social Security benefits. We want to have that. And I’ve been seeing a lot of IVF, and I kept hearing that I’m against it, and I’m actually very much for it. In fact, in Alabama, where the judge ruled against it, and I countered the judge and came out with a very strong statement for it. And the Alabama [Legislature] they were amazing. The Legislature approved virtually my statement. I mean, full IVF, and it’s really gone — it’s terrific. And I said, so, with the tips and with the Social Security, no taxes on Social Security, I said, maybe for IVF, and I’ve been looking at it, and what we’re going to do is for people that are using IVF, which is fertilization, we are, government is going to pay for it, or we’re going to get or mandate your insurance company to pay for it, which is going to be great. We’re going to do that. Well, it’s big. And you know what? We want to produce babies in this country, right? We want to produce babies. So I think it’s going to be something we told we sort of announced it a little bit.
Other news of note:
The Maryland Senate race between Angela Alsobrooks and former Governor Larry Hogan is a dead heat. The race could determine party control of the Senate.
U.S. Space policy got more complicated this week after a Space X Falcon 9 rocket tipped over after landing on a drone ship. The FAA promptly grounded the Falcon 9 fleet. This will delay the private “Polaris Dawn” mission previously scheduled for launch this week but could also delay other Space X human-crewed missions, including the one to bring the Boeing Starliner astronauts home.
Finally, I follow Nvidia stock. The company reported strong earnings but also rising costs as it develops even more powerful computer chips, which resulted in the stock dropping significantly.
Nvidia’s performance in the stock market does not reflect the state of the U.S. economy but offers insights into the future of Artificial Intelligence. The attention Nvidia got this week is evidence of how central AI is becoming to our future.
Thank you.
Thank you for reading today’s Friday Insights. Enjoy the Labor Day weekend. And please consider subscribing to Dean’s Issues & Insights if you have not already done so.
© 2024 John Dean, all rights reserved.