Kamala Harris in Lion’s Den: Will Fox News Interview Improve Her Poll Ratings?
Published in Polityka
(Poland) on 17 October 2024
by Paweł Zalewski (link to original)
(Poland) on 17 October 2024
by Paweł Zalewski (link to original)
Translated from
by Danuta Kowalska.
Edited by Patricia Simoni.
Apart from presenting Harris as a fearless warrior boldly entering a lion's den, the Fox News interview was an attempt to sway undecided independent voters and even Trump-averse and hesitant Republicans.
The interview Kamala Harris gave for Fox News was her first appearance in the most important conservative media bastion, a TV channel supporting a Trump-dominated day of politics in the U.S. on Wednesday. By agreeing to undergo such a test, she scored a plus, eliminating one of the Republicans' main arguments in the campaign — that she was afraid to answer the most difficult questions. However, assessing whether or not the interview will increase her chances in the election is difficult.
Harris Stood Her Ground
For the evening interview with Harris, Fox News appointed Bret Baier, one of the station's most unbiased journalists, not a propagandist, as are many of their commentators. The interview, however, was fundamentally different from previous interviews with the vice president in this year's campaign in other media outlets that were clearly sympathetic to her, where she was more often asked less difficult questions. The Fox News interview’s tone was confrontational. Baier started with the most troubling issue of illegal immigration and asked about the most difficult problems, such as her support for far-left proposals in the past. When she deviated from the subject or evaded questions, he interrupted and pressed for a clear answer. Harris didn't give up; she reacted with prosecutorial ferocity to the interruption of her statement, saying, “You have to let me finish, please.”
On several points, she won the match: After the interview, even Fox News journalist Dana Perino admitted that “she was fairly effective" at times. Asked if she would do anything differently from Biden, Harris said, “My presidency will not be a continuation of Joe Biden’s presidency ... I will bring my life experiences, my professional experiences, and fresh and new ideas.” She fixed the mistake she made when she gave an interview on The View, where when asked the same question, she said, “Nothing comes to mind,” thus contradicting her oft-repeated statements that she would be “the president of change.”*
Pressed by a Fox News reporter on whether she still supports such proposals as allowing a driver's license and free medical care for migrants illegally crossing the border, she replied that “we need to support federal law”* on these issues, which does not provide for similar benefits. When Baier recalled that vice presidential candidate Tim Walz had ensured these benefits for immigrants in his state as Minnesota governor, she answered that it was she who is running for the White House.
Will Harris Convince Republicans?
As Democratic strategists have suggested, the Fox News interview, in addition to portraying Harris as a fearless warrior boldly entering the lion's den, was an attempt to help undecided independent voters and even Trump-averse and hesitant Republicans. According to some polls, 10% of Americans say they might still change their minds. Among them are many Republicans who supported Nikki Haley in the primary.
Commentators believe voters should expect from Harris statements regarding her policy on the most important issues, such as the economy and immigration. In the first case, she reiterated previously known initiatives such as tax credits for children, the construction of affordable housing and subsidies for first-time home buyers to facilitate the payment of the down payment and obtain a loan. She did not mention tax increases for millionaires. Immigration became the subject of the most heated exchange with Baier, but Harris did not answer clearly with the exact ideas she has for changing Biden’s policy, under whose administration hundreds of thousands of foreigners without right of entry passed through the southern border. Pushed to a defensive position, she repeatedly referred to legislation worked on in Congress by politicians of both parties that aimed to partially secure the border, but that was obstructed by Republicans who remained loyal to Trump. And she promised that as president, she would push that bill through.
What Will the Never Trumpers Movement Do?
During the 25-minute interview, Harris spent most of the time criticizing Trump. She denounced his authoritarianism, exacerbating divisions in America; she brought up that his former White House aides see him as a formidable threat and that economists see his ideas as a recipe for recession. That's all true, but if the Fox News appearance was meant to convince wavering Republicans from the “Never Trumpers” movement, they already knew perfectly well the threat behind the former president's return to the highest office.
Harris’ not-always-clear, at times evasive and often vague statements allowed Trumpists to say after the interview that “we still don't have a clear picture of who Harris is.”
Therefore, it seems highly unlikely that the Fox News interview has especially increased her chances. The polls before it showed her going head to head with Trump. Let's wait for new ones in the coming days. The election is less than three weeks away.
*Editor’s note: Although accurately translated, this quoted passage could not be independently verified.
The interview Kamala Harris gave for Fox News was her first appearance in the most important conservative media bastion, a TV channel supporting a Trump-dominated day of politics in the U.S. on Wednesday. By agreeing to undergo such a test, she scored a plus, eliminating one of the Republicans' main arguments in the campaign — that she was afraid to answer the most difficult questions. However, assessing whether or not the interview will increase her chances in the election is difficult.
Harris Stood Her Ground
For the evening interview with Harris, Fox News appointed Bret Baier, one of the station's most unbiased journalists, not a propagandist, as are many of their commentators. The interview, however, was fundamentally different from previous interviews with the vice president in this year's campaign in other media outlets that were clearly sympathetic to her, where she was more often asked less difficult questions. The Fox News interview’s tone was confrontational. Baier started with the most troubling issue of illegal immigration and asked about the most difficult problems, such as her support for far-left proposals in the past. When she deviated from the subject or evaded questions, he interrupted and pressed for a clear answer. Harris didn't give up; she reacted with prosecutorial ferocity to the interruption of her statement, saying, “You have to let me finish, please.”
On several points, she won the match: After the interview, even Fox News journalist Dana Perino admitted that “she was fairly effective" at times. Asked if she would do anything differently from Biden, Harris said, “My presidency will not be a continuation of Joe Biden’s presidency ... I will bring my life experiences, my professional experiences, and fresh and new ideas.” She fixed the mistake she made when she gave an interview on The View, where when asked the same question, she said, “Nothing comes to mind,” thus contradicting her oft-repeated statements that she would be “the president of change.”*
Pressed by a Fox News reporter on whether she still supports such proposals as allowing a driver's license and free medical care for migrants illegally crossing the border, she replied that “we need to support federal law”* on these issues, which does not provide for similar benefits. When Baier recalled that vice presidential candidate Tim Walz had ensured these benefits for immigrants in his state as Minnesota governor, she answered that it was she who is running for the White House.
Will Harris Convince Republicans?
As Democratic strategists have suggested, the Fox News interview, in addition to portraying Harris as a fearless warrior boldly entering the lion's den, was an attempt to help undecided independent voters and even Trump-averse and hesitant Republicans. According to some polls, 10% of Americans say they might still change their minds. Among them are many Republicans who supported Nikki Haley in the primary.
Commentators believe voters should expect from Harris statements regarding her policy on the most important issues, such as the economy and immigration. In the first case, she reiterated previously known initiatives such as tax credits for children, the construction of affordable housing and subsidies for first-time home buyers to facilitate the payment of the down payment and obtain a loan. She did not mention tax increases for millionaires. Immigration became the subject of the most heated exchange with Baier, but Harris did not answer clearly with the exact ideas she has for changing Biden’s policy, under whose administration hundreds of thousands of foreigners without right of entry passed through the southern border. Pushed to a defensive position, she repeatedly referred to legislation worked on in Congress by politicians of both parties that aimed to partially secure the border, but that was obstructed by Republicans who remained loyal to Trump. And she promised that as president, she would push that bill through.
What Will the Never Trumpers Movement Do?
During the 25-minute interview, Harris spent most of the time criticizing Trump. She denounced his authoritarianism, exacerbating divisions in America; she brought up that his former White House aides see him as a formidable threat and that economists see his ideas as a recipe for recession. That's all true, but if the Fox News appearance was meant to convince wavering Republicans from the “Never Trumpers” movement, they already knew perfectly well the threat behind the former president's return to the highest office.
Harris’ not-always-clear, at times evasive and often vague statements allowed Trumpists to say after the interview that “we still don't have a clear picture of who Harris is.”
Therefore, it seems highly unlikely that the Fox News interview has especially increased her chances. The polls before it showed her going head to head with Trump. Let's wait for new ones in the coming days. The election is less than three weeks away.
*Editor’s note: Although accurately translated, this quoted passage could not be independently verified.
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