It took forty days for Kamala Harris to agree to an elementary exercise in the presidential campaign: the television interview. This surprising delay, since Joe Biden’s withdrawal in her favour, had offered the Republicans a window of opportunity against the Democratic candidate. Can we claim the highest office if we avoid contradictions so much? Kamala Harris’s performance on CNN on Thursday 29 August was therefore awaited and analysed. The channel even showed a permanent countdown on its antenna, during the day, as if we were waiting for the take-off of a space mission from Cape Canaveral.
The wait was excessive. There was no crash or fireworks. It was a short exercise (27 minutes interrupted by commercial breaks and campaign images) with no major gaffes or highlights. The decor was strange (a kind of gray, impersonal office) and the framing was unfavorable for Kamala Harris, who seemed huddled between her running mate, Tim Walz, and journalist Dana Bash.
The Democratic candidate spoke calmly, occasionally allowing herself a broad smile or a laugh, but she was devoid of any sharp words. No doubt wanting to appear as presidential and controlled as possible, she failed to embody the energy that has animated the Democratic campaign since the end of July. But the real test was not Thursday on CNN. It will take place on September 10, facing Donald Trump, during their debate on the ABC channel.
Tribute to Joe Biden
On the merits, Kamala Harris asked voters to “turning the page on the last decade”which was contrary to “the spirit of our country”implicating the former president for having “divided our nation.” The only foreign policy issue raised concerned the war in Gaza. Kamala Harris did not speak out in favour of freezing arms deliveries to Israel. She renewed her commitment to defending the Jewish state and called for a successful conclusion of the negotiations, with a view to the release of the hostages still alive and a ceasefire.
The candidate also strongly defended the Biden administration’s record, emphasizing that “the economy had collapsed,” before her arrival at the White House, Kamala Harris briefly outlined her own plans, such as the $25,000 tax credit for first-time homebuyers. “part of the American dream”The vice president acknowledged that “the prices are too high”while insisting on reducing inflation to 3%, creating jobs in industry and renegotiating drug prices with the pharmaceutical industry. As for the migration crisis, he transferred responsibility to Donald Trump, whom he accused of having “delicate” the text negotiated on a bipartisan basis in the Senate, “that they would have deployed 1,500 more agents on the border” with Mexico.
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