ABC News’ senior White House correspondent Selina Wang on Tuesday said Vice President Kamala Harris often did not offer detailed responses during her National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) interview.
Harris spoke with NABJ member journalists in Philadelphia about the Israel-Hamas war, the economy and other issues during the roughly 45-minute interview. Wang noted Harris’ answers on both the Gaza war and Americans’ well-being compared to four years ago lacked “specific” details.
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“She was pressed about how her policy towards Israel and Gaza might be different than that of President Biden’s and she did not directly answer the question or offer any policy specifics, but she repeatedly said that we need to get a deal done,” Wang told host Kyra Phillips.
“Since Harris announced her candidacy, she’s been very careful, Kyra, to not have too much daylight between her views and that of President Biden. So everything she said on foreign policy very much tracks with President Biden’s views,” Wang added. “Now, there were multiple times, though, during this interview where Vice President Harris did not offer a specific answer. Instead, she pivoted and returned to her talking points that she wanted to hit, particular[ly] on a question about whether or not Americans are better off today than they were four years ago.”
Harris answered the question by asserting she and Biden inherited “a mess” from former President Donald Trump, noting the dismal economic circumstances related to the COVID-19 pandemic. She then asserted she and Biden “have created over 16 million new jobs,” brought down the black unemployment rate, invested in small businesses and reduced medical costs.
MSNBC host Katy Tur fact-checked Democratic California Rep. Nancy Pelosi in April claimed job losses under Trump were the worst out of all presidents without mentioning the pandemic. The poverty rate reached an all-time low and the unemployment rate reached a 50-year low during the former president’s term before the pandemic in 2020, according to a Trump White House press release.
Harris acknowledged prices are “still too high” and detailed her economic plans, including tax credits for housing developers and down payment assistance for home buyers. Prices have surged over 20% since Biden and Harris took office in January 2021.
Undecided swing-state voters in a Monday focus group said the way Harris answers questions on the campaign trail is “insulting” to them. The vice president faced criticism for her Friday interview with 6ABC Philadelphia’s Action News, where she rambled about her middle-class upbringing when anchor Brian Taff asked her what “specific” strategies she intends to implement to improve affordability for Americans.
Harris also avoided directly answering a question regarding her many policy flip-flops during the Sept. 10 presidential debate, opting to discuss her “middle-class” upbringing while explaining how her “values have not changed” despite her policy changes.
Democratic strategist James Carville during a Thursday podcast seemed to suggest Harris field a blend of “planted” and unrehearsed queries during public speaking engagements to appear more impressive, without making it “evident” she already knew some of the questions.
Featured Image Credit: The United States Senate – Office of Senator Kamala Harris
