If you ask Joe Biden, he still could have won the election. Last month, during an interview on "The View" he declared, “I was confident I would beat Trump — he’s a loser.” We'll never know for sure now that he's dropped out because the leaders of the Democratic Party were convinced that he was going to lose badly and take down-ballot races down with him.
Fast forward to today, and things don't look all that different from the situation we had just before Joe Biden dropped out. The polls are shifting to Donald Trump, with national polls and battleground states breaking for him; meanwhile, down-ballot races are starting to break for Republicans. Key Senate races in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan are either in toss-up territory or heading that way.
At first, when Kamala Harris took over the top of the ticket, it looked like she had given Democrats a chance. Her poll numbers shot up, down-ballot races appeared to be safer for the Democrats, and their party was riding high on vibes. Her chances of victory soared in the betting markets and projection models. It was like she saved the Democrats at the 11th hour. And then, as time went on, reality set in: Kamala is a garbage presidential candidate.
This wasn't surprising. Kamala's first presidential campaign in 2019 was a complete disaster. She failed to get out of single digits, and the biggest moment of her campaign was when she essentially accused Joe Biden of being racist for his past willingness to work with segregationists to oppose busing.
Can Kamala still win? Sure. But there's no denying that her campaign is in trouble. After weeks of refusing to do interviews, her campaign finally realized they had to put her out there, and none of those interviews have been a net positive for her.
She stuck with friendly networks and interviewers who supported her campaign. When that didn't work she tried going on Fox News, and that didn't work. Now she's taking time off from the campaign trail to prep for hours for interviews and town halls and still can't make the case for why she should be elected president.
Recommended: Kamala’s CNN Town Hall Was a Masterclass in Political Self-Destruction
Kamala’s town hall on CNN is a perfect example. She was unable to answer a single question, and Instead of focusing on her policies, she attacked Donald Trump.
This frustrated even CNN's own talking heads. David Axelrod, a former top Obama adviser, described Harris’ responses as a “word salad city,” particularly when it came to issues like Israel and immigration. Axelrod noted that she often dodged direct answers, leading to missed opportunities to clarify her stance on important issues.
Dana Bash added that Harris failed to “seal the deal,” particularly when it came to her legislative priorities and past mistakes. Van Jones criticized Harris for being “evasive” and avoiding key questions. He expressed irritation with her "word salad stuff," questioning if her communication style was effective in reaching voters. It's not.
NEW: CNN’s Scott Jennings says Kamala Harris is a “double-threat” because she can’t think on her feet and can’t answer the expected questions.
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) October 24, 2024
CNN has railed on Harris after her town hall event.
Here are the top reactions:
6. Axelrod: She is word salad city.
5. Jennings:… pic.twitter.com/Mdrr46uzbz
These are people who want her to win.
Biden may have botched the debate, but when he had a good day, he was a better communicator than Harris. Is it possible that the freakout over his debate performance would have blown over eventually? It might have. And if it had, he'd probably be no worse off now than Kamala.
Even with his cognitive decline, he was able to communicate his views and positions better than Harris could. Right now, her campaign's biggest problem is that she can't even sell herself to the voters.
