On Monday’s Morning Edition, National Public Radio aired another softball interview with Vice President Kamala Harris, with questions from morning anchor Michel Martin such as “what’s your message?” and “what does an event like this mean to you?”
Once again, as with Asma Khalid at Christmas time, Harris was granted a wide berth to unspool ponderous long answers with zero fear of hardballs or interruptions. The occasion was the Essence Festival in New Orleans, thrown by Essence magazine, a publication for liberal black women.
On abortion, Martin wondered “Has there been a story that’s really touched you or stood out to you over the course of the year that you’ve been traveling and having meetings about this?” Harris told of a “horrendous story” of a woman denied an abortion at the emergency room three times until she developed a serious infection. No fact checker will be checking her statements.
At the end, Martin asked Harris: “Madam Vice President, is, is that enough for you, as a sort of a political actor, to establish yourself in the minds of the American people as a credible successor, if need be, to President Biden?” NPR did not ask if Biden would be too old to serve at 86, or ask if Biden has to run again because Harris’s approval rating is lower than Biden’s.
Enjoy the podcast below or wherever you listen to podcasts.