I am sure you watched Kamala Harris’ interview with Bret Baier on Fox News last night. She had an opportunity to really explain to Fox News viewers how she could help them, and she didn’t. It was a total failure. She did not move the needle at all.
Instead, she just kept repeating her same few small-ball plans for the economy, which she has all but admitted are just a pipe dream unless the Democrats take complete control of both the House and Senate. The real question is: What if you don’t have control of Congress? And she did no better in addressing that massive problem to all of her plans last night.
Harris’ Strategy
She spent the majority of her time bashing Donald Trump. Obviously, that is what this was about for her. Kamala Harris wanted to go on Fox News – into the belly of the beast – and just bash Donald Trump. It was one long game of Trump the pinata with a bunch of attacks that, in many cases, were utterly baseless.
This, Madam Vice President, was the wrong strategy. You should have called me because I worked at the place for 14 years, and I know the Fox News viewers very well. You do not win Fox viewers over by bashing Donald Trump. They either love Trump or are open-minded to Trump.
You win them – if they are winnable at all – by showing the people who are not huge Trump fans but are Republicans or have voted Republican that you are a better option because you can help improve their lives, they can trust you, and you aren’t as radical as they have been hearing all day, every day on Fox News for a year.
She didn’t do any of that. Instead, what Kamala Harris did was take every opportunity to show the audience she is the chief sufferer of Trump Derangement Syndrome. She lied over and over and over on her positions and policies. She denied her own record. Worst of all, she dodged question after question after question after question after question and then played the victim, trying to sound indignant when Bret tried to get her back on track. That was the biggest dynamic of the whole interview.
Time and time again, she failed to answer the questions on big issues. Those included immigration, whether we should use taxpayer dollars to fund trans surgeries for prisoners and illegals (which is important but also is a stand-in for the overall issue of trans and the erasure of women), and Biden’s mental acuity. Finally, someone asked her that question! And she failed to answer that one too.
Instead, she filibustered. That was her go-to trick either with non-responsive pablum or by bringing up another issue entirely. This is a politician’s trick, and it is not unusual to see it. But in response to everything? There was no substance. What was she doing there? She was trying to win voters in a new forum. Why would she say nothing? The only thing of substance she said was, ‘Trump sucks.’ And that is the wrong strategy when dealing with Fox News viewers. I don’t get it.
The Line of Questioning
When Bret would try to redirect her back to the question asked, she acted like he was ‘rude’ – a word her lap-dog media sycophants keep repeating today. To those morons who think Bret was ‘rude’ in trying to get her to answer the question asked, let me tell you something:
It is not her air. It is Bret’s air. It is Rupert Murdoch’s air. You being there is a gift to you. Roger Ailes used to tell us to never thank anybody for being on our show. They should be thanking you. You are giving them a massive audience. It is your gift to them. I don’t know what the ratings will be for last night, but it will be big.
It is your job as the interviewer to control the air when you have a guest on, to keep it interesting for your audience, to keep the car driving straight ahead and to not let it veer too far off the track. That is your obligation. Bret is employed because Fox News believes, accurately, that he will deduce what his audience wants to have asked and see discussed. It is not up to her to come hijack the entire interview with empty talking points we have heard 10,000 times.
He did absolutely the right thing by redirecting her over and over to the question asked and, on behalf of his audience, pressing her for a real answer. He didn’t let her slide. These media writers out there may not know what it is like to be a Republican, or independent, or right-leaning person and how frustrating it is to watch her get away with her lies. It is a soothing balm to watch somebody actually confront her with the real facts. I thought Bret crushed it.
Tough Luck
Now, her little act today is being praised by the left as she looked “tough.” But this was not toughness. This was a candidate incapable of answering hard questions; trying to dodge long enough to distract the questioner; and when Bret was not distracted, she would begin to whine that she wasn’t being allowed to answer.
That is not tough. Tough is answering the hard questions, which, let’s face it, virtually every president and presidential candidate can do. Barack Obama could do it. Mitt Romney could do it. John McCain could do it. Donald Trump can do it when he wants to.
She blew a big chance to define herself in a new way, and I am telling you: Fox News viewers were sitting there pulling their hair out listening to her go on and on about Trump. She failed. She blew her opportunity to go into the lion’s den and show how tough she is because she couldn’t answer the tough questions. She is incredibly empty.
You can check out Megyn’s full analysis by tuning in to episode 919 on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you like to listen. And don’t forget that you can catch The Megyn Kelly Show live on SiriusXM’s Triumph (channel 111) weekdays from 12pm to 2pm ET.