CNN's Van Jones and Republican vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance have expressed concerns about Vice President Harris' lack of media appearances since becoming the official Democratic nominee for president.
CNN's Van Jones and Republican vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance have raised concerns about Vice President Harris' lack of media appearances since becoming the official Democratic nominee for president.
Jones said Wednesday that Harris' absence from the press "can't last" and that she needs to be available to the press. He noted that Harris had only been at the top of the Democratic ticket for about two weeks, and became the official nominee on Friday.
Vice President Harris' Lack of Media Appearances Raises Concerns
"But it can’t last. It’s very important. And we can’t make favorites. Anybody running for the top office needs to be as available as possible," Jones said.
Harris has not granted any interviews with the press or held any press conferences in her roughly two weeks of taking over the top of the ticket.
Vice President Harris' Lack of Media Appearances Raises Concerns
Jennings, a CNN political commentator, also said former President Trump and Harris should get some debates scheduled.
"She‘s not sat down with any journalist, that I know of. She’s been pretty good in front of a teleprompter, but she refuses to come and answer questions about her time as vice president, her record when she ran for president, her record in the Senate and what she was the most liberal U.S. senator, but at some point, she’s going to have to answer some questions, and it may be that the debate stage is the only place Donald Trump can get that done," Jennings said.
Vice President Harris' Lack of Media Appearances Raises Concerns
Harris briefly addressed reporters at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland as she and President Biden greeted Americans freed from Russia in a massive prisoner swap, including Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich.
Trump's running mate, Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, called out the press on Tuesday and said it needed to force Harris to answer questions.
"I think you guys have got to do a better job at actually forcing Kamala Harris to answer questions. This is a person who has been a presumptive Democrat nominee for 16 days. She hasn’t taken a single real question from a reporter. The American people deserve to get to know the people who want to lead them, and I think it’s shameful for Kamala Harris, but increasingly for the media, that she is taking a basement strategy of running from reporters instead of getting in front of them and answering tough questions about her record and letting the American people know who she is," Vance said during a press gaggle.
The Democratic National Committee on Friday announced that Harris had officially clinched the 2024 presidential nomination after winning the votes of a majority of pledged delegates to the Democrats' upcoming national convention.
Harris also announced on Tuesday that Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz would be her vice presidential running mate.
Some have speculated that Harris' lack of media appearances is a strategy to avoid gaffes or negative headlines. However, others have argued that it is important for candidates to be accessible to the press and answer questions from reporters.
It remains to be seen whether Harris will increase her media appearances in the coming weeks and months. However, the concerns raised by Jones, Jennings, and Vance suggest that her lack of visibility could become a liability in the upcoming presidential campaign.
