A prominent Democratic pollster has defended Vice President Kamala Harris over her penchant for steering clear of sit-down interviews amid criticism that she’s avoiding scrutiny of her record while a heartbeat away from the Oval Office.
Cornell Belcher brushed aside concerns that Harris is giving the impression she’s scared to go off-script by declining to make herself available to reporters.
“She should be talking to the voters and barnstorming the way they do,” Belcher, president of Brilliant Corners Research & Strategies, said during NBC’s “Meet the Press” panel segment on Sunday. “I don’t want her talking to you all right now. She should be talking to voters and going across the country.”
Since ascending to the top of the Democratic ticket last month, Harris has yet to do a major interview, though she has teased plans to get one “scheduled” by the month’s end.
Harris, 59, has also taken a limited amount of on-the-record questions from reporters during gaggles since her ascension following President Biden’s withdrawal from the race July 21.
Former President Donald Trump has convened multiple press conferences and given scores of interviews over the past month in an effort to throw shade at Harris.
Many Republicans believe Harris has a history of making gaffes when pressed by reporters and want to see her grilled on proposals such as her recent push for a federal ban on so-called “price gouging.”
They’ve also sought to get more specifics from her on policy after spokespeople for her campaign declared she has reversed her 2020 campaign positions on issues such as Medicare for All, fracking and illegal immigration.
Notably, Harris’ campaign website still does not list a comprehensive agenda, despite the election being just 10 weeks away.
Belcher’s fellow panelists contended that Harris should sit down with more reporters in order to prove that she can take the heat and defend her positions.
“Candidates don’t need us as journalists to get their message out,” PBS anchor Amna Nawaz said before Belcher’s remark. “Interviews are where candidates face rigor and skepticism and questions about issues that they’re not raising on the campaign trail and in monologue.”
“It opens it up to a conversation in a way that’s good for voters and good for democracy,” she went on. “I will just say, having been with Vice President Harris in unscripted scenarios, there’s policy command there that can come out in these kind of interviews.”
Harris is scheduled to square off against Trump in a Sept. 10 debate hosted by ABC News in Philadelphia.
Trump has also pitched two additional debates, to be held Sept. 4 and hosted by Fox News and Sept. 25 to be put on by NBC News, but Harris has not committed to either of those.
