Vice President Kamala Harris has been roasted on "The Daily Show" for her tendency to speak in word salads, with a skit introducing her "holistic thought advisor."
Vice President Kamala Harris has become the target of late-night satire once again, this time for her habit of using "word salads" in her speeches. On Tuesday's episode of "The Daily Show," correspondent Desi Lydic lampooned Harris with a skit introducing her "holistic thought advisor," Dahlia Rose Hibiscus, played by Lydic herself.
The skit opens with a disclaimer: "The following is a parody based on actual events. No real vice presidents were harmed in the making of this sketch."
Surrounded by candles, a "vision board," and a "Mad Libs" game, the "thought" guru explains that she leads the vice president in "not so much sentences as idea voyages."
"It’s a process I call speaking without thinking," she continues. "It’s not about the destination of the thought, it’s about the journey and how many words you use to describe the journey."
The comedy show then played several clips of Harris rambling and repeating herself in public speeches. In one clip, she tells an audience, "You think you just fell out of a coconut tree? You exist in the context of all in which you live and what came before you."
The thought advisor explains that after receiving a speech from Harris's staff, she cuts out each word and then takes them to her "word cave" for inspiration.
In her cave, the thought advisor is shown swaying in a spiritual ritual while flinging words around the room to "learn what order the universe wants them to be in."
"The feeling they give you is so much more powerful than what they mean," she says.
The thought advisor knocked down critics who say people "should be able to understand their leaders when they talk."
"I prefer to leave Kamala’s thoughts open to interpretation, like a work of modern art that you look at and go, ‘I wonder what that was all about?" she explained.
The liberal comedy show has lampooned Harris's speech patterns before. In a video posted to The Daily Show's X account in 2022, the show compared Harris to satirical political character Selina Meyer from "Veep." The show played clips from "Veep" followed by clips of real speeches given by Harris to show their similarities.
One clip showed Harris speaking at the Children’s National Hospital in Washington, D.C., saying, "When we talk about the children of the community, they are the children of the community."
The video then responded with a clip of Meyer explaining, "Well, we are the United States of America because we are united… and we are states."
Despite the criticism of her speaking style, Harris continues to deliver speeches that are full of confusing jargon and convoluted language. Whether she is speaking to world leaders or to a group of children, Harris's tendency to use word salads has become a defining characteristic of her public persona.
Some have defended Harris's use of complex language, arguing that it is a sign of her intelligence and her ability to think deeply about complex issues. Others, however, have criticized her for speaking in a way that is inaccessible to ordinary Americans.
Regardless of one's opinion of her speaking style, there is no doubt that Harris is a polarizing figure in American politics. Her supporters praise her for her intelligence, her passion, and her commitment to social justice. Her critics, however, accuse her of being inarticulate, ideological, and out of touch with the concerns of ordinary Americans.
Only time will tell whether Harris will be able to overcome the criticism of her speaking style and become a successful vice president. However, one thing is for sure: her "word salads" will continue to be a source of amusement for late-night comedians for years to come.
