Kamala Harris’s first big interview as nominee: 5 takeaways

Vice President Harris on Thursday sat for her first major interview since becoming the Democratic nominee.

Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D), were interviewed by CNN’s Dana Bash as they campaigned in Georgia. The interview took place earlier in the day and was broadcast on the cable network Thursday evening.

CNN stretched the interview out for an hour of airtime, though the actual sit-down appears to have been much shorter. The hour was interspersed with campaign trail footage and commercial breaks.

Harris and Walz acquitted themselves unspectacularly but adequately. Bash, for her part, adopted a mild tone that is likely to fuel conservative complaints, even though she did press Harris on some topics.

Here are the major takeaways from the interview:

Harris defends her policy shifts

Harris has one obvious vulnerability — her propensity to change her position, and the way that trait has fueled broader doubts about her authenticity.

She sought to punch back in Thursday’s interview, telling Bash, “My values have not changed.”

To support that point, she emphasized her fundamental belief that climate change is a real and present danger. She also emphasized the more hawkish elements of her past record on immigration, hearkening back to her time as attorney general of California when she prosecuted gang members accused of human trafficking.

But when Bash prodded more firmly on the specifics, Harris had some of her least impressive moments of the interview.

Asked by Bash whether she still wanted to ban fracking, as she had in the past, Harris replied, “No, and I made that clear on the debate stage in 2020, that I would not ban fracking.”

Bash, naturally, then read for a second time a 2019 quote where Harris said there was “no question” that she would ban fracking.

“In 2020, I made very clear where I stand,” Harris responded. “We are in 2024, and I’ve not changed that position.”

The explanation only drew further attention to the underlying inconsistency.

Likewise, asked about whether she still believed, as she indicated during the 2020 primary, that unauthorized border crossings should be decriminalized, Harris replied, “I believe there should be consequences.”

While Harris largely avoided the defensive tone that has marked some previous interviews, it’s hard to believe her answers won over many doubters.

Harris gives new details on Biden’s withdrawal from the race

Harris for the most part doubled down on her loyalty to President Biden.

She argued history would judge his presidency to be “transformative” and that he had been “quite selfless” in working for the American people.

At another point, paying tribute to Biden’s “intelligence,” “judgment” and “disposition,” Harris added, “By contrast, the former president has none of that.”

On a human level, one of the more interesting elements of the interview came when Harris described Biden calling to tell her he was going to end his reelection bid.

Harris said her family, including her baby nieces, were staying with her, and had just had pancakes when Biden called. The vice president said she asked him if he was sure of his decision, and he reiterated that he was.

Asked by Bash whether she asked for Biden’s endorsement on that call, Harris contended it was obvious the president was going to support her.

“My first thought was not about me, to be honest with you. My first thought was about him,” she added.

At other points, there were some very subtle signs of distance between the lines.

Harris didn’t answer directly when asked whether she considered “Bidenomics” a success.

Instead, she pointed to the most popular elements of the administration’s economic record, including capping the cost of prescription drugs for seniors and boosting employment in manufacturing.

“I’ll say that that’s good work,” Harris said, “There’s more to do, but that’s good work.”

Harris makes an appeal to disaffected Republicans

The election is likely to be decided by a small sliver of undecided voters in roughly seven battleground states.

Harris is at pains to make herself as appealing as possible to voters in the center ground — and to those who lean Republican but have misgivings about former President Trump.

In Thursday’s interview, asked by Bash whether she would appoint a Republican to her Cabinet if elected, Harris said she would — though she noted she had no one in particular in mind.

“I think it’s really important. I have spent my career inviting diversity of opinion,” Harris told Bash.

Of course, it’s entirely possible that Harris, if elected, could find some rationale for failing to keep the apparent commitment.

But this was a clear promise to reach across America’s political divide — and an attempt to reassure at least some conservatives that their voice would be heard in a Harris administration.

Walz negotiates some hurdles

The decision by the Harris campaign to do a joint interview with Walz drew criticism, especially from conservatives, who argued the presidential nominee should have sat for a solo interview.

There is, however, a long history of both members of a party’s presidential ticket doing interviews together.

Overall, it was neither a stellar nor bad performance from the vice presidential nominee.

The Minnesota governor was asked about a past comment when he said he carried weapons “in war” despite never actually serving in combat.

Walz meandered somewhat around the point, contending that “I speak candidly” and that people “know where my heart is”— though he acknowledged that his English-teacher wife told him his “grammar” was “not always correct.”

Walz answered in a similar fashion on a question about what precise kind of fertility treatment his wife Gwen and he had undertaken. But on that topic, he seemed on more solid ground with his contention that most people are not “cutting hairs on IVF or IUI.”

Perhaps Walz’s best moment was when he was asked about his children’s emotional reaction to his speech at the Democratic convention, especially his son, Gus.

Walz talked with evident emotion about his gratitude that “my son [felt] a sense of pride in me.”

For Harris, ‘boring’ is good

Trump weighed in on Truth Social with a characteristically emphatic assessment of the Harris interview.

“BORING!!!,” his post read in its entirety.

What the former president appeared to be missing is that “boring” was likely just fine for Harris.

The vice president has enjoyed a remarkable run since Biden announced his decision to step aside. She has wrapped up the nomination, surfed a wave of Democratic enthusiasm, seen her campaign fundraising swell and been heralded at a glitzy convention.

She now enjoys a slight lead over Trump in the polls.

The CNN interview won’t be going in any hall of fame for the art of political persuasion — but it won’t get close to the hall of shame either.

For Harris and Walz, they ticked the box of having conducted a major interview. They didn’t do anything that seems likely to choke off their momentum.

On Thursday, a modest mission was accomplished.

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