Vice President Kamala Harris finally answered some questions on Thursday.
After Donald Trump spoke for more than an hour at a Mar-a-Lago press conference — which included answering more than a dozen questions from reporters — Harris fielded a handful of softball questions from the media on the tarmac at the Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport.
‘Peak journalism is that when you finally get a chance to ask the candidate a question you ask about when they will take more questions.’
It was the first time Harris had answered questions since becoming the Democratic Party’s presumptive presidential nominee last month.
Here were the questions and answers:
- Reaction to Trump’s press conference: “I’m glad that he’s finally agreed to debate on Sept. 10. I’m looking forward to it. I hope he shows up.”
- More debates: “I am happy to have that conversation about an additional debate after Sept. 10.”
- Why Trump “pulled out” of the debate: “I am beyond trying to speculate about how he thinks.”
- Accusations of Tim Walz’s “stolen valor”: “Listen, I praise anyone who has presented themselves to serve our country. And I think that we all should.”
- On dodging the media: “I’ve talked to my team. I want us to get an interview scheduled before the end of the month.”
The entire interaction lasted approximately 70 seconds. By contrast, Trump spoke with media for approximately 70 minutes at Mar-a-Lago.
Notice, however, the content of the questions. None of the reporters sought substantive answers to questions Americans care about, like how Harris plans to combat inflation or how she plans to end the border crisis. The reporters certainly did not inquire about Harris’ foreign policy agenda.
Both the content of the questions and Harris’ final answer — that she may participate in a sit-down interview by the end of August — received criticism from forces that are friendly to Democrats and the media. Conservatives, of course, also widely panned the spectacle.
“Before the end of the month? It’s August 8!” writer Chris Cillizza, formerly of CNN and the Washington Post, responded.
“Peak journalism is that when you finally get a chance to ask the candidate a question you ask about when they will take more questions,” said Matthew Yglesias, co-founder of Vox.
