Harris Receives Bipartisan Backlash After CNN Interview, Trump Campaign Delivers Receipts

After 40 days on the campaign trail and in her first primetime interview as the Democratic nominee for President of the United States, Vice President Kamala Harris, flanked by running mate Tim Kaine Walz, delivered word-salad responses, served on a plate of government force and subsidies, to a variety of “softball” questions from CNN anchor Dana Bash. Her responses were met with bipartisan backlash and Dana Bash was, not unexpectedly, bashed.

The approximate 27-minute interview was sans a “touchdown” according to a former President Obama staffer. Chief Strategist of Barack Obama’s presidential campaigns David Axelrod charged that she didn’t “move the ball that much forward.” With less than 60 days to early voting, and one scheduled debate with former President Donald Trump, voters simply need to believe that her radical “values haven’t changed,” even though she has flip-flopped on numerous policies, including building a once-xenophobic wall.

According to past Democratic playbooks, voters must, once again, have “hope” to move “forward” (from her last four years), with only one debate scheduled and zero solo interviews scheduled.

The Trump campaign gathered many receipts from headlines, Democrats, Republicans, and reporters who in a rare moment, not seen since JFK Jr. endorsed Trump, showed unity.

• Harris keeps saying ‘my values haven’t changed’ while not explaining why her positions have changed.” (Yamiche Alcindor, NBC News)
• “Kamala Harris showed her tendency toward winding answers … Thursday’s interview was a reminder that unscripted, she can sometimes deliver discursive answers that ramble and zigzag.” (Reid Epstein, The New York Times)
• “I don’t think she moved the ball that much forward.” (David Axelrod, former Obama senior advisor)
• “‘People are ready for a new way forward,’ is an interesting comment from Kamala Harris, the sitting vice president.” (Matt Viser, The Washington Post)
• “I don’t think there’s a policy separation that they’ve created with Biden.” (Astead Herndon, The New York Times)
• “There’s some cleaning up to do.” (Domenico Montanaro, NPR)
• “Harris may have missed some opportunities — such as a chance to be specific about her plans for her first day as president.” (Nicholas Nehamas, The New York Times)
• “They basically got through it.” (Alex Thompson, Axios)
• “Kamala Harris still managed to fumble even this cozy chat.” (Rozina Sabur, The Telegraph)
• “She offered no remorse, no regrets, no introspection about anything they’ve done.” (Scott Jennings, CNN)
• “Kamala Harris was asked a specific question about what she would do on Day 1 if elected as POTUS. Her answer was so vague that it was essentially worthless.” (Frank Luntz, pollster)
• “I didn’t hear anything that helps me get a clearer [idea about] what a Harris administration would attempt to do. And I have no idea whatsoever on how a Harris presidency would differ from a Biden presidency.  (Grant Reeher, Syracuse University)
• “Walz let off hook for claiming he’d carried weapons in a war zone. Harris let off hook on her part in cover up of Biden’s cognitive decline. @CNN giving masters class on how not to hold politicians to account.” (Andrew Neil, The Daily Mail)
• “Only two words come to mind: Dishonest. Trainwreckalicious.” (Joe Concha, Fox News)
• “Maybe she didn’t score a touchdown.” (Ashley Allison, former Obama White House staffer)
• “She did not actually make clear at a 2020 debate that she had changed her previous support for a fracking ban.” (Daniel Dale, CNN)
• “You cannot trust her — and she proved it tonight. It was a disaster. This interview will be with her for a long, long time.” (Tim Murtaugh, Trump senior advisor)
• “There was no reflection at all on the day one executive actions or anything else [Kamala and Biden] did for three-and-a-half years — or anything she said in her previous campaign, which was to have the most permissive immigration structure.” (Scott Jennings, CNN).

When Harris loses a reporter at NPR, there is definitely some cleaning up to do.