In a week that delivered an absolute avalanche of feel-good stories about likely Democratic nominee Kamala Harris, one man has been shoved completely to the sidelines. Donald Trump is afraid to debate her. He’s unable to find a way into the news cycle. And a VP selection made just 11 days ago is making Sarah Palin seem like a brilliant choice.
Trump’s campaign is anxiously playing defense. Trump’s nickname for Harris only makes her seem better. Republican leaders are telling party members to see if they can find any line of attack that isn’t purely racism and sexism—while Trump’s spokesperson is suggesting that racism may be all they have.
And Trump is demonstrating the last sign of total political desperation for any Republican: He’s citing Rasmussen polls.
Huh. So this is what a good week looks like.
Shortly after Joe Biden announced that he was suspending his campaign on Sunday afternoon, The Atlantic reported on how this blew up Trump’s entire campaign. Trump’s team was convinced that it was too late, that Biden couldn’t withdraw. The primaries were done. Biden insisted he was staying. And Trump was free to run a campaign in which he knocked “Sleepy Joe” for his poor performance in the first debate all the way to November.
The mentality of this Trump campaign, [Trump senior advisor Chris] LaCivita once told me, is to spend every day on offense. The team wants to shape the pace and substance of every news cycle and force Democrats to react, ensuring that key battles are fought on the GOP’s chosen terrain.
That is not happening.
Ten days earlier, the Trump campaign was reportedly supremely confident, planning for a landslide victory. It was that kind of confidence that made Trump feel comfortable about picking Sen. JD Vance as his running mate, even though Vance did nothing to expand his base.
Then … boom.
It took Trump a long time to notice and admit that he was no longer running against Biden. For days he continued to make social media attacks on the candidate-that-was, not the candidate he was facing.
That attitude extended into Trump’s first rally after Harris entered the race, where Trump lobbed some generic “radical liberal” attacks at Harris but continued to focus much of his rhetoric on Biden. And it’s still happening on Trump’s failing social media platform, where he’s whining about Biden’s departure.
Trump has even launched another of his endless lawsuits in an effort to block Harris’ access to campaign funds raised when Biden was the candidate. The litigation isn’t going to work, but at least it makes Trump feel like he’s doing something—which is probably a big relief to those who have to live with him.
Honestly, this isn’t going to last. Republicans will settle into a line of attack—and considering where the party is now, that attack will probably be both racist and sexist. Trump’s campaign will get back on its feet and find a way to turn everything that has happened this week into a fundraising pitch. That’s what they do.
And Vance … sorry. That one might not be fixable.
Help turn a good week into a good month, good election, and good four years—sorry, make that eight—by contributing $10 to the Harris campaign today!