Kamala Harris is a lousy candidate. That she cannot take criticism is one of her biggest failings.
In one of NASA’ s biggest failures, it was tripped up by an analytical device called a null detector. The Hubble Telescope was delivered to space by the Space Shuttle. The smaller mirrors that together made up the massive main mirror were tested for having proper curvature by using this null detector. When all of the mini-mirrors checked out, the telescope was sent off to space only to return blurry pictures, much to the consternation of the astrophysics community. It turned out that the null detector itself was not set properly and thus its “correct” readings were all wrong. A correction was made on a later shuttle flight and the telescope provided amazing pictures from space.
The defective null detector might be a good analogy for the campaign staff and shills surrounding the thin-skinned Kamala Harris. Bret Baier had a shortened interview with the sitting vice-president. He asked highly relevant questions about how many people entered the US illegally under the “Biden-Harris” administration, why half of the country would support Donald Trump if he is such a crazy fascist as she claims, and how can she “turn the page” from a book of policies that she herself wrote. In her patented fashion, Harris avoided answering any of the questions. Even a simple one like how many people entered the US via the southern border during the past 3.5 years was met with complaints about Trump. What happened after the debate shows the weakness of the Harris camp. Baier was declared a misogynist, a racist, a MAGA loyalist and worse for simply doing his job. Kamala Harris volunteered to be interviewed by a well-known Fox News personality. Like watching a train wreck unfold, everyone knew the general tenor of the questions that would be asked. Yet, when the interview went very badly and was cut off extremely early, it was Baier who was accused of intentionally sabotaging the exchange. The kvetching comes from the same people who gave high praise to the debate moderators who did their best to sabotage both Donald Trump and JD Vance.
A long, long time ago, Al Gore ran and thank God lost his run for the presidency. Like Harris, Gore is not much of a people’s person. He is wooden and tends to spout statistics and factoids instead of entering into a warm discussion. At one point, Saturday Night Live did a fake debate between two actors playing Gore and George W. Bush. An exasperated Bush screamed that Gore was a “Harvard Yard Brainiac.” Gore’s people made him watch the clip in order for him to understand how he comes off in both debates and interviews. The problem with the current Kamala Harris candidacy is that she does not take to criticism and those around her are terrified to provide her the same. There were many stories over the past few years of the large turnover in the vice president’s office, of mean and belittling behavior by Harris towards subordinates, her refusal to delve deeply into policy papers produced by her staff and clashes between Harris people and Biden people. Making mistakes is human, and every political campaign has made plenty of them. The question is whether the candidate and those who run his or her schedule learn anything. Donald Trump seems much more disciplined than in previous runs, and the emphasis on his family has added a more human touch to the candidate. Barack Obama condescendingly said that Hilary Clinton was “likable enough” and then went on to lose the New Hampshire primary. He changed his tone and approach to his competitor and won the big prize.
Kamala Harris, as a DEI-fueled rocket from San Francisco to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue has never had to deal with failure and making herself better. She failed up from local positions to state jobs to being a senator and now vice-president. She is incapable of understanding how grating she is and how awful she comes across when she does not answer simple questions. One conservative commentator said that the answer to the “how many have come over illegally” should have been something to the effect: “Around six million. We definitely made mistakes but my future administration will cut down the flow into the country as soon as I take office.” It’s not a great answer, but it beats blaming the candidate who has been out of office for nearly four years. It also sounds better than answering a question regarding a very specific number with a non-specific answer that does not address the core question—a question that a lot of Americans would very much like to have answered. And this is her approach to everything: obfuscate, do circles, blame Trump, call Trump a fascist, say how much she loves America, remind the world that she still thinks that she came from the middle class and that there is no small business that she does not love. My lawyers always told me at depositions to give the absolute minimal answer to the specific question asked. If they ask you your name, give it but don’t say that you were born in Chicago, etc. For Kamala Harris, her answers are always maximum words with minimal relevant content.
The race is not over but Kamala Harris has not improved in her interview and interactions skills, whether with the ladies on The View or with a serious newsperson on Fox. She cannot criticize Joe Biden or his policies and she cannot give a policy prescription without being asked why she does not put it into effect as she is in the White House today. Tucker Carlson asked a former classmate of mine, now a political analyst, why the Harris people could not anticipate certain questions (“How will your administration be different?”) and prepare winning answers. His answer was that they are in a position where they can’t do it. If she criticizes Biden, she could lose his support and his voters. If she says that she would continue Joe’s policies, then the 79 percent of the populace who think that the country is heading in the wrong direction would wonder why 2025 and beyond will be any better.
Imagine a college basketball team with two unique players. One was undrafted but worked furiously and earned the respect of the team and a starting position. The other is the coach’s son. He is overweight and lazy but is also out there with the starting five. At some point, when the pressure builds, the former player will shine while the coach’s son will wheeze and collapse. Kamala Harris has never allowed herself to be tested. And she is now paying the price for this failure to be ready.