Former President Donald Trump and his campaign spent much of last week discussing Vice President Kamala Harris’s racial background. However, political analysts and polling data suggest they are overlooking crucial issues: Instead, they should focus on three key concerns — inflation, immigration, and the progressive policies Harris has supported.
As vice president, Kamala Harris is closely associated with the policies and record of the Biden-Harris administration, which is currently underperforming on several key issues, per RealClearPolitics. Recent polling data shows President Joe Biden with a 34.5% average approval rating on inflation, while 62.5% of respondents disapprove of his handling of the issue. Similarly, on immigration, Biden has a 33.2% approval rating, with 62.8% disapproving.
The Trump campaign did initially try to link her to the Biden administration’s policies, as evidenced by an early campaign ad portraying her as the driving force behind the White House’s key initiatives. “Look what she got done: a border invasion, runaway inflation, the American Dream dead. They created this mess. They – no, Kamala – owns this failed record,” the ad declared.
“But the campaign swiftly got off message, with Trump side-tracked by Harris’s mixed-race background and her efforts to capitalize on that. Trump suggested she had only recently opted to identify as a black woman,” Just the News reported. “Harris is the daughter of a Jamaican father and an Indian mother. She has long emphasized her Indian heritage, but Trump’s remarks nonetheless triggered a punishing news cycle and put his campaign on defense.”
Trump somewhat returned to form this week amid a stock market tumble he deemed the “Kamala crash,” asserting on Truth Social that, “Of course there is a massive market downturn. Kamala is even worse than Crooked Joe. Markets will NEVER accept the Radical Left Lunatic that DESTROYED San Francisco and California, as a whole.” He also warned of a possible “Great Depression of 2024.”
If the Trump campaign shifts its focus to Kamala Harris’s weaker polling areas and aligns its messaging with those issues, analysts believe there could be a greater opportunity for the Republican message to connect with voters, especially given the current economic challenges, the outlet said.
“When Donald Trump is talking about growing the American economy, building new great cities, baby boom, no taxes on tips, Donald Trump is winning. When he gets into that petty stuff with her, he’s not winning,” Trafalgar pollster Robert Cahaly said on the “John Solomon Reports” podcast last week.
“But this campaign is no longer about stirring up the base to fever pitch, it is about delivering a message that looks presidential, that is in keeping with his values. When Donald Trump explains trade abuse, and how it affects people, they’re more likely to be supportive of his tariff plan,” Cahaly said. “And when he talks about… the decline in small town America and the Rust Belt, because, you know, jobs are shipped overseas… And so when he’s talking about that, I think he is really effective,” Cahaly added.
The Democrats’ late switch at the top of their ticket has disrupted the race, boosting Democratic confidence while leaving Republicans struggling to finalize their strategy against Kamala Harris. However, Democratic operatives caution that Trump still holds an advantage and that Harris will not win easily.
Meanwhile, a leading Democratic consultant and operative has dampened a lot of hopes among members of his party who are overly confident about Harris’ chances against Trump following President Joe Biden’s decision to drop his reelection bid. In an interview with CNN, David Axelrod, who served as an advisor to then-President Barack Obama, said there is a lot of “irrational exuberance” around Harris’ presidential bid and that the race is “Trump’s to lose.”
“And look, she has a lot of momentum. But if you do look at the polling, this is still a really tight race. This is going to be a hard fight for either side — tough based on the numbers we’re seeing right now,” host Jessica Dean said, setting up Axelrod for a response. “100 percent. There’s a lot of irrational exuberance on the Democratic side of the aisle right now because there was despair for some period of time about what November was going to look like,” he began.
“Now people feel like there’s a chance. But it is absolutely Trump’s race to lose right now. He is ahead and he is ahead in most of the battleground states. They are close, they can be won by either candidate. But there’s a lot to be determined in the next 90-whatever days — 96 or what it is left,” he continued. “So yes, I think it’s a wide-open race, but Trump has the advantage right now and nobody should — nobody should be, nobody should be — everybody should be sober about that on the Democratic side.”
Trump’s camp is making attempts to link Harris to Biden’s failed policies. Biden “endorsed Kamala Harris, who’s been with them for three and a half years,” pollster John McLaughlin asserted on the “John Solomon Reports” podcast last week. “So the two-thirds of voters that say the country is on the wrong track, the majority of voters who say they’re worse off today than they were four years ago, they’re the ones who think the… country’s going backward. That follows, she’s responsible for all these things.”
Disclaimer: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author’s opinion.