Oprah Winfrey’s redirect exposes Kamala Harris’ evasiveness on policy questions
Even Kamala Harris’ allies recognize the need for her to start providing voters with straightforward answers.
But can even Oprah Winfrey break through to her?
During a casual conversation with Oprah at an event in Michigan, an audience member named Justin asked the Democratic nominee how she planned to secure the border.
After several minutes of vague responses, where Harris oddly shifted blame for the migrant crisis to Donald Trump for the failure of a bill earlier this year, Winfrey intervened to encourage Harris to provide something meaningful.
“So, in response to Justin’s question, now that the bill has not passed, will you reintroduce it?” Oprah inquired.
“Absolutely,” Harris replied.
“When I am elected as president of the United States, I will ensure that the bill reaches my desk, and I will sign it into law.”
That’s all: No specifics, no new approaches to address one of the major concerns for voters leading up to the election.
Just to remind you: Many Republicans in Congress oppose the bill that Harris is advocating for as a fix because they believe it will not address the border issue and might exacerbate the crisis by automatically granting work permits to every migrant labeled as an “asylum seeker,” further encouraging migration.
This entire exchange avoids addressing why the crisis began on the day Biden-Harris assumed office and why it was allowed to escalate for years.
The remainder of the event was no better: When asked about the skyrocketing cost of living, Harris pointed fingers at price gouging once more (even though she has backed away from her proposed solution), then fell back on the limited policy ideas she frequently mentions: $25,000 for (some) first-time homebuyers and an increased tax break for small business startups.
To label her as a one-trick pony would be overly generous.
Oprah may support Kamala, but she is also an expert in communication (having built a billion-dollar empire on that skill) who can clearly see that the candidate’s unwillingness to provide any details on how she plans to address the pressing issues concerning voters is a failing tactic.
Winfrey presented Harris with a perfect chance to shine, but she still fell short.
Americans are not looking for vague statements; they want concrete solutions.
Yet Harris appears unable to offer any, even in the most favorable setting.
