It’s rather shocking that Kamala Harris has remained noticeably silent for nearly 47 days post her appointment as the official Democratic nominee for president. Instead of openly addressing the public, she has opted for an unsettling evasion of traditional press conferences.
In spite of mounting pressure for a thorough and detailed interview, and weeks of actively avoiding the press, Harris finally broke her silence. However, this was nothing but a pretaped segment that was done alongside her running mate Tim Walz, with CNN’s Dana Bash in Georgia last week. Anyone expecting authenticity and sincerity would have been left wanting, as this made-for-TV event was far from a conventional press conference.
Throughout the interview with CNN, Harris attempted to justify her bewildering flips on critical policies, from fracking to immigration. She maintained that her personal ‘values’ haven’t changed, a statement which raised more eyebrows than it answered questions and came off as insincere given her shifting stances.
Then came the compelling question on whether she regretted defending President Biden’s mental acuity, especially after he dropped out of the race less than a month after their debate. Evasively, Harris only stated her desire to ‘turn the page on the last decade’ whose direction, according to her, clashed with the spirit of the country.
This statement seemed like a cop-out, particularly considering she served as Vice President for three-and-a-half years of that decade. Bash promptly mentioned this, but Harris hastily brushed it off, aiming to move past this ‘era’. This appeared to be a concealed jab at the political ascent of Donald Trump that started in 2015.
Harris’s seemingly scripted and staged interview didn’t escape the eyes of NBC News Washington correspondent Yamiche Alcindor. In a rare shift from her usually fawning coverage of Biden-Harris, Alcindor didn’t sugarcoat her doubts. She critiqued Harris for continually saying ‘my values haven’t changed’ without justifying her changed positions.
As for a formal press conference – proper, honest, and unhindered by the protective shield of a running mate – it’s anybody’s guess whether that day will ever come while she remains a candidate.
In quite a stark contrast to Harris’s evasion, former President Trump has carried out several in-depth interviews in recent weeks. Additionally, he held a duo of press conferences, again highlighting the difference in media accessibility between the two.
Harris’s time with Bash brought in mixed judgment. While she answered most of the queries, the fact that she needed Walz there for moral support didn’t go unnoticed. The liberals found an element of praise only in her aggressive refusal of a question about Trump’s hint that she never identified with her Black heritage until she reached adulthood.
Refusing to engage with this question, Harris dismissed the racial attacks from Trump as a ‘tired playbook’, as if disinterested, and abruptly moved on to the next topic. However, conservative CNN commentator Scott Jennings believed the Trump campaign must have been ‘salivating’ over her endorsement of ‘Bidenomics’, a revelation from this interview.
By participating in a closely-managed interview, Harris merely managed to cross the self-set finish line that she’d laid out three weeks prior: holding an interview by month’s end. But the real question remains – will there be a real push for her to be more open and forthcoming, and potentially give her first individual interview as a candidate?
In this fascinatingly tangled political sphere, it remains to be seen whether Kamala Harris would willingly step into the limelight without her running mate and engage with the pressing questions that the American people need answers to. This isn’t just about living up to an expectation – it’s about demonstrating leadership, and right now, it’s a quality that seems to be in short supply.
Despite claims that her ‘values’ remain the same, inconsistency lurks behind those words as her policy positions shift. Such maneuverability might fit with a shifty political landscape, but it doesn’t build confidence, leaving many to wonder about the real Kamala Harris behind the political facade.
In the demanding world of politics, evasion is often viewed as a sign of weakness or fear of transparency. The lack of a formal, candid press conference has inevitably raised eyebrows and questions over Harris’s political courage and dedication to open communication.
For now, Harris continues to tread a path that seems to eschew direct accountability and straightforward communication with both the press and the public. This raises fundamental questions about her supposed leadership qualities and whether she can withstand the relentless scrutiny that comes with the noble task of leading a nation.