1. Josh Shapiro on the Harris ticket could have made a difference in Pennsylvania…but probably not anywhere else.
Voters may never really know why Vice President Kamala Harris didn’t make an offer to Democratic Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro.
Anti-Semitic sentiment as part of the progressive base was one of the common explanations at the time, and may have certainly been a minor factor in the decision, but with high approval ratings Shapiro joining the ticket booth severe headwinds after four years of open borders, persistent inflation and high interest rates.
Still, being perceived as a “moderate” may not have been enough to overcome the disappointing four-year record of Biden and Harris.
2. It is almost impossible to create a completely new image or story in four months.
Fact: Before becoming the Democratic presidential nominee, Harris had the lowest approval ratings ever for a vice president.
She was also the first candidate to drop out of her party’s primary in the 2020 presidential primary. She had the title of “border czar” (as many Democrats thought) amidst an influx of 12-14 million immigrants (some of whom were clearly violent and murderous). strangely denied it) borders.
She famously failed to maintain staff during her tenure as vice president. And while she insisted on following a brief interview schedule in her basement and famously avoided an interview with the influential Joe Rogan, she refused to sit down with Bret Baier and answer real questions. It was an influential campaign moment, until it was forced to, but it didn’t pan out.
As if to prove that point, when asked her opinion on California’s Proposition 36, a bill that would roll back some of the dark blue state’s recent anti-crime policies, Harris actually answered the question. I refused. No wonder she didn’t catch fire.
3. Celebrity endorsements, especially those from unexpected sources, can really help, but they can also really hurt.
The last cycle, Oprah Winfrey late approval Senator John Fetterman (Pennsylvania) and Maryland Governor Wes Moore helped both Democrats win the night election.
This cycle had late endorsements by (including) Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Elon Musk, Joe Rogan, and many prominent American sports figures. Brett FavreLe’Veon Bell, antonio brown) helped push Trump over the finish line, especially in Pennsylvania, the ultimate battleground state. And even a late-cycle softball interview with Oprah couldn’t save Harris.
On the downside, stupid and insulting comments from the rich, famous, and powerful can be damaging. For example, Biden’s baseless reference to Trump supporters as “trash” and Mark Cuban’s indictment of Republican women around Trump (he never came close to “strong, intelligent women”). ) was just another addition to the ever-growing list of high-flying flights. America’s insults by progressive Democrats, Hollywood actors, and academics.
4. Candidates and messages will continue to be counted.
Republicans effectively exploited the contrast between the Trump era and the Biden-Harris era. The challenge of defending the indefensible proved too much for Harris, who never had a good answer (or any answer for that matter) about how she differed from Biden. The lack of press conferences and public appearances (to say the least) also didn’t help.
Yet Democrats maintained the same old, plain old narrative that while things were great in America, they simply couldn’t get their message across effectively.
Note: Whenever politicians say the problem is communication, not message, the problem is message. Moreover, the Democratic Party’s core message that Trump is a “threat to democracy” (code for the January 6, 2021 Capitol riot) appears to be interpreted in vastly different light across the coasts. There, far more voters saw the Biden-Harris administration’s legislative and censorship efforts as a more serious real threat to American democracy today.
Whether progressives in Democratic leadership learned anything from this election cycle is an open question. Sadly, the loud, ugly, and now well-known accusations of “racism,” “sexism,” and “misogyny” now apply to white men as well as African-American and Hispanic men. has also been applied, which is not a positive sign.
Bob Ehrlich is a former Maryland governor, congressman, and state representative. He is the author of five books on American politics, as well as opinion pieces published in major American newspapers and periodicals. He and his wife, Kendel, can be heard on their weekly podcast, “Bottom Line with Bob & Kendel Ehrlich.”
The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the Daily Caller News Foundation.
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