Kamala Harris Why She Chose to Bring Tim Walz to Her First Major Interview

[Social Media]

 

Just three weeks ago, soon after Kamala Harris was formally selected as the Democratic presidential nominee, she was asked about her plans for a sit-down interview. Standing on the airport tarmac in Detroit, she assured reporters, "I’ve talked to my team. I want us to get an interview scheduled before the end of the month." 

 

On Thursday night, Harris is set to fulfill that promise, albeit barely. She will appear in her first major interview with CNN's Dana Bash, scheduled for prime-time at 9:00 PM EDT. However, Harris will not be conducting this interview alone. She will be accompanied by her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. This decision to bring Walz along for her first significant public engagement raises questions about her confidence and strategy as the Democratic nominee. 

 

While Harris has answered the lingering question of when she would have an in-depth discussion of her candidacy and agenda, her decision to have a joint appearance may give critics more ammunition. Some argue that after sidestepping the intense scrutiny of a long primary season, Harris is now avoiding the rigorous examination that comes with a solo interview. Scott Jennings, a former special assistant to President George W. Bush, criticized Harris's approach, saying, "I think it’s incredibly weak, weak sauce, to show up with your running mate," adding that she had a "troubling lack of confidence in her own political ability."

 

Yet, Harris's supporters believe that her cautious pace is justified, given the unprecedented nature of her candidacy following President Joe Biden's sudden withdrawal from the race. Peter Giangreco, a Democratic strategist based in Chicago, argued that the timeline has been strategic: "Win the nomination, pick your nominee, lay out your economic plan, do your convention and now do some sit-downs and amplify that." This slow-burn approach allows Harris to build momentum without overwhelming voters too quickly.

 

Joint interviews involving both members of a presidential ticket are not uncommon. Barack Obama and Joe Biden sat down for an interview with "60 Minutes" after Biden was named as the vice-presidential nominee in 2008. Similarly, Hillary Clinton and her running mate Tim Kaine participated in a joint interview in 2016. Harris and Biden themselves did a joint appearance on ABC’s "20/20" in 2020. More recently, following the announcement of JD Vance as his running mate, Donald Trump and Vance appeared together on Fox News. 

 

However, since Biden passed the torch to Harris late last month, she has kept most of her press engagements to carefully orchestrated settings. Her last formal interview was over two months ago, on June 24. Since then, her sporadic interactions with the press have been limited to short answers to questions shouted at her during campaign stops. This lack of engagement has done little to counter Republican accusations that she is avoiding scrutiny of her record and policy positions. Her critics have been relentless, particularly those within the Republican ranks who have made their own rounds of media appearances over the past month. "She’s not smart enough to do a news conference," former President Donald Trump stated bluntly earlier this month. "She won’t do interviews with friendly people because she can’t do better than Biden."

 

Despite these criticisms, Harris has gained significant traction since entering the presidential race. However, as Republican strategist and Trump critic Chip Felkel points out, she now needs to "reinforce" that momentum. "She’s gotta get out there," Felkel stated. "She’s got to show that she can think under pressure, because that’s part of what the president has to do." 

By opting for a joint interview, the Harris campaign seems to have calculated that the pressures and tough questions will be shared between her and Walz. This approach also ensures they are unified in their policy explanations.

 

According to Giangreco, the Democratic strategist, Harris and Walz will likely focus on their economic plan—a strategy to reduce the cost of living and provide economic security, which Harris first announced at a rally in Raleigh, North Carolina, two weeks ago. 

 

Giangreco also suggested that a joint interview provides a chance to highlight the differences between Walz and his Republican counterpart, JD Vance, whom he described as "weird." Yet, the true impact of Harris and Walz's joint appearance will not be known until after the interview airs.

 

Harris's track record with high-pressure interviews is mixed. In a 2021 interview with NBC’s Lester Holt, she struggled to answer questions about her role in the administration's border policy—a performance widely considered a failure. In contrast, she appeared calm and collected during a more recent one-on-one interview with CNN’s Anderson Cooper, where she defended Biden’s performance amid a heated debate.

 

If this upcoming joint interview on CNN mirrors her more successful media appearances, the Harris campaign hopes it will silence some of the criticism. "They just need to be able to say ‘See, we told you,’” Felkel said, “And then keep moving."

In bringing Walz along for this high-stakes interview, Harris may be taking a cautious but strategic step forward. The decision underscores her attempt to both manage public perception and maintain a unified front with her running mate. Whether this approach will help or hinder her campaign remains to be seen, but it certainly adds another layer of intrigue to her candidacy and the 2024 presidential race.

 

Credit: BBC 2024-08-30

 

 

 

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[spidermike007]

She is playing it smart. She is way ahead in the polls, and both Trump and Vance are flaming out, melting down, and shooting themselves in the foot daily. Both are poor candidates and both are making alot of mistakes.

 

It is her election to lose. Especially after she humiliates Trump in the debate. 

[stoner]

probably one of the biggest mistakes in US political history.....and they were doing so well with the bait and switch. 

 

10 bucks says it is pre recorded and heavily edited. 

[Hayduke]

 

 

A so-called Harris "interview" with the official party network CNN....is not so much a real interview as it is a contrived campaign infomercial.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 29 by Hayduke

[stevenl]

2 minutes ago, stoner said:

probably one of the biggest mistakes in US political history.....and they were doing so well with the bait and switch. 

 

10 bucks says it is pre recorded and heavily edited. 

Looking at the numbers the Harris campaign is doing fine so far.

All the speculation hasn't gotten the MAGA team anywhere.

[stoner]

1 hour ago, stevenl said:

Looking at the numbers the Harris campaign is doing fine so far.

All the speculation hasn't gotten the MAGA team anywhere.

 

yes 100's of millions in organic donations to the lowest rated VP is US history....kinds of numbers. 

[mdr224]

1 hour ago, stevenl said:

Looking at the numbers the Harris campaign is doing fine so far.

All the speculation hasn't gotten the MAGA team anywhere.

the rigged numbers from left propaganda?

[thesetat2013]

3 hours ago, Social Media said:

This decision to bring Walz along for her first significant public engagement raises questions about her confidence and strategy as the Democratic nominee

It is obvious her reasons to do an interview with someone there. She now has someone to turn to give her hints at what to say or to outright reply in her stead. She needs to withdraw from the elections as she is clearly unable to do the job without people around her telling her what to say or do. 

[JonnyF]

Could this be any more pathetic?

 

She's running for POTUS and she can't even do a softball interview with a leftist propaganda machine like CNN without bringing someone along to hold her hand.😃

 

 

[stoner]

2 hours ago, stoner said:

probably one of the biggest mistakes in US political history.....and they were doing so well with the bait and switch. 

 

10 bucks says it is pre recorded and heavily edited. 

 

Stoner you won the bet. ill get you that tenner. seems it's not going to be a live interview.

 

 

Edited August 30 by stoner

[mdr224]

This chick is going to get completely wrecked when she debates trump. Like a pig to slaughter

[gargamon]

8 minutes ago, stoner said:

 

Stoner you won the bet. ill get you that tenner. seems it's not going to be a live interview.

 

 

Trump's interview with dr. Phil was also recorded.

[Patong2021]

57 minutes ago, stoner said:

 

yes 100's of millions in organic donations to the lowest rated VP is US history....kinds of numbers. 

Source for rating please.

 

[gargamon]

2 minutes ago, mdr224 said:

This chick is going to get completely wrecked when she debates trump. Like a pig to slaughter

Keep lowering the bar. Your buffoon will look worse because she will greatly surpass the lowered expectations.

[Patong2021]

The angry old men screaming commie and leftist at a world that has changed and left them behind would be  funny if it wasn't so sad.

 

The fifth columnist Russian supporters are  reminder of where most of the world's problems lie and who is behind the wars around the world.

[stevenl]

3 hours ago, stoner said:

probably one of the biggest mistakes in US political history.....and they were doing so well with the bait and switch. 

 

10 bucks says it is pre recorded and heavily edited. 

You're going to donate your 10 bucks to Asian now?

[stevenl]

53 minutes ago, mdr224 said:

This chick is going to get completely wrecked when she debates trump. Like a pig to slaughter

So the interview which this thread is about didn't get you the results you were hoping for.

[Fat is a type of crazy]

3 hours ago, stoner said:

probably one of the biggest mistakes in US political history.....and they were doing so well with the bait and switch. 

 

10 bucks says it is pre recorded and heavily edited. 

No editing. Stoner loses. 

[frank83628]

3 hours ago, stoner said:

probably one of the biggest mistakes in US political history.....and they were doing so well with the bait and switch. 

 

10 bucks says it is pre recorded and heavily edited. 

if not it will be a softball tongue bath, with pre arranged questions and answers, it's dana bash the one the was hostile to Trump? so it would be easy to see the difference in her attitude.

[frank83628]

1 hour ago, gargamon said:

Trump's interview with dr. Phil was also recorded.

the thread isn't about Trump, plus he has dont 100's of live unscripted interviews. 2+ hours with musk.

 

the thread is about Harris doing her FIRST interview in nearly a month.

[frank83628]

3 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

She is playing it smart. She is way ahead in the polls, and both Trump and Vance are flaming out, melting down, and shooting themselves in the foot daily. Both are poor candidates and both are making alot of mistakes.

 

It is her election to lose. Especially after she humiliates Trump in the debate. 

smart, yeah ok. you know that if this were Trump that hid away for a month, went with vance or did something out of the ordinary you'd be slagging him left right & centre. 

[CallumWK]

Just watching parts of the interview on CNN right now, and they are calling her out on the change in her policies, which she denies.

Next they play clips from interviews in 2019, which prove she is lying. Can't wait for the debate, but I doubt she will show up

[Wrwest]

Some folks commenting on Presidential Nominee doing an interview with their Vice Presidential Nominee has a long established history, including Trump in the past.

[john donson]

sleepy joe dead?

[mdr224]

1 minute ago, john donson said:

sleepy joe dead?

I think its no secret he was never really running the country

[frank83628]

9 minutes ago, Wrwest said:

Some folks commenting on Presidential Nominee doing an interview with their Vice Presidential Nominee has a long established history, including Trump in the past.

it's more the fact people doubt she could do it alone,  i don't think a Presidential Nominee hiding away for a month has a long established history.

[frank83628]

7 minutes ago, john donson said:

sleepy joe dead?

i find it quite strange that he's just vanished totally, they wheeled him out at the DNC, he fluffed his words, told 5 or 6already debunked lies about Trump that went un fact checked in any media,

then off the the beach never to be seen again.

 

its amazing how shallow, disloyal, deceitful and power hungry the Dems/left are
 

[frank83628]

37 minutes ago, CallumWK said:

Just watching parts of the interview on CNN right now, and they are calling her out on the change in her policies, which she denies.

Next they play clips from interviews in 2019, which prove she is lying. Can't wait for the debate, but I doubt she will show up

quite surprising to hear from CNN, how come?

[nauseus]

1 hour ago, CallumWK said:

Just watching parts of the interview on CNN right now, and they are calling her out on the change in her policies, which she denies.

Next they play clips from interviews in 2019, which prove she is lying. Can't wait for the debate, but I doubt she will show up

 

Great interview.

 

What will you do on your first day in office, Kamala? 

Just carry on blaming Trump, lying and flip-flopping.

 

 

[Tug]

The interview went just fine sorry trumpers no meat to chew on lol 😂