Vice President Kamala Harris has notably avoided interviews for 17 days since President Joe Biden exited the presidential race. This period has seen significant developments, including Biden endorsing Harris, Democrats uniting behind her, and her becoming the Democratic nominee via a virtual vote ahead of the upcoming Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Harris also introduced her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, on Tuesday.
During this time, former President Donald Trump’s running mate, Senator J.D. Vance, has been persistently criticizing Harris for her media silence. His latest jab came on Wednesday when his plane, Trump Force Two, arrived on the same tarmac as Harris’ Air Force Two. Vance seized the opportunity to mock Harris’s reticence, questioning why she hasn’t addressed the media. He suggested that his respect for the press and the American public contrasts with Harris’s avoidance, emphasizing his commitment to answering reporters’ questions.
Vance has been traveling with a group of reporters, including representatives from Dailymail.com, consistently engaging with them and addressing their inquiries. Although Harris has interacted with journalists accompanying her travels, she has only sporadically answered questions. On Tuesday, for instance, she briefly spoke to reporters, praising Walz as a “great vice president” while boarding Air Force Two en route to Philadelphia, where she and Walz made their official debut. During the flight, she had an off-the-record conversation with reporters for a few minutes.
Despite these interactions, Harris has not conducted a traditional sit-down interview with a broadcast network. This contrasts with Biden’s approach during challenging times in his campaign. Following a poor performance in the June 27 presidential debate in Atlanta, Biden sat down for interviews with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos and NBC’s Lester Holt. Recently, he scheduled an interview with CBS’s Robert Costa, set to air on CBS Sunday Morning, marking his first interview since withdrawing from the 2024 race. Although Biden has taken questions from journalists post-exit, his forthcoming interview will be his first formal media engagement since stepping down.
As for Harris, it remains uncertain when she will follow suit and engage in a similar media interview. Her avoidance has drawn increasing attention and speculation, especially given the high-profile nature of her candidacy and the critical period leading up to the Democratic National Convention. The pressure from both the media and political opponents like Vance suggests that Harris will need to address the press in a more traditional and comprehensive manner soon.
The ongoing scrutiny of Harris’s media strategy highlights the broader dynamics of the 2024 presidential race. With Biden’s exit reshaping the Democratic field and Harris stepping into the spotlight as the party’s nominee, her approach to media engagement will likely play a significant role in shaping public perception and her campaign’s trajectory. The contrast between her current strategy and Biden’s past media engagements underscores the varying approaches candidates take in navigating the complex landscape of political communication.
Harris’s eventual decision to conduct a traditional sit-down interview will be a pivotal moment, potentially setting the tone for her campaign’s media strategy moving forward. As the Democratic National Convention approaches and the general election campaign intensifies, the pressure on Harris to engage more openly with the press will only increase. How she handles this aspect of her candidacy will be closely watched by both supporters and critics, impacting her ability to connect with voters and define her narrative in the race for the White House.
