Kamala Harris said her presidency would “not be a continuation of Joe Biden’s presidency” in a testy interview with the right-wing Fox News channel Wednesday night, as she criticized Donald Trump for his continued threats against “the enemy within.”
The 25-minute interview, conducted after Harris held a meeting with more than 100 Republican officials in Pennsylvania, marked the first time Harris had spoken to Fox News, which has been a consistent supporter of Trump.
Bret Baier, Fox News’ top political anchor, is seen as a veritable news counter to the vitriol of Fox News’ evening shows, but still came up with a litany of right-wing issues, including immigration, transgender rights and Joe’s achievements Biden. Harris tried to sell himself to the channel’s older, largely Republican audience.
Harris was asked if there was anything she would “do differently” than Joe Biden, when Baier played a clip of the vice president in an earlier interview saying there is “nothing that comes to mind” that she would have changed . That response has become a point of attack among Republicans as they try to tie Harris to the unpopular Biden administration.
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“Let me be very clear. My presidency will not be a continuation of Joe Biden’s presidency, and like any new president who comes to power, I will bring my life experiences, my professional experiences and fresh new ideas. I represent a new generation of leadership,” Harris said.
“For example, as someone who hasn’t spent the majority of my career in Washington, DC, I invite ideas: whether it’s the Republicans who support me, who were on stage with me just a few minutes ago, and the business community and others, who can contribute to the decisions I make.”
Baier pointed to polls showing a majority of Americans believe the country is “on the wrong track,” and asked Harris why they said that when she has been vice president since January 2021. Harris suggested that the polls show a fatigue in Biden and Trump, given that the latter has been running for office since 2016.
Harris noted that several prominent former members of the Trump administration now believe “that he is unfit to serve, that he is unstable, that he is dangerous, and that people are exhausted of someone who claims to be a leader, who has complete demeaning time and dealing with personal grievances.”
Baier wondered why Trump has support for “half the country” given these criticisms. He added: “Are they stupid?”
“I would never say that about the American people. And if you listen to Donald Trump, if you watch any of his rallies, he is the one who tends to demean, belittle and belittle the American people,” Harris said.
‘He is the one who speaks of an enemy within. An enemy within, talking about the American people and suggesting he would turn the American military against the American people.”
Trump had appeared on a Fox News town hall episode that aired earlier on Wednesday, where he doubled down on his comments about “the enemy within.” He characterized this so-called internal enemy, who he believes should be dealt with “by” the military, as “the Pelosis” and his other political opponents.
The former president had reacted angrily to the news that Baier would interview Harris, posting on social media that the anchor was “often very soft on those on the ‘cocktail circuit’ left” and falsely claiming that Fox News was “so weak and soft for the Democrats.”
But while Baier was an alternative to more radical late-night hosts like Sean Hannity and Jesse Watters, he largely stuck to right-wing issues.
He played a Trump campaign ad, which he said was one of the few political ads to “break through” this year. The ad cited a 2019 interview with Harris in which she said she supported “surgical care” for trans prisoners.
Trump has spent tens of millions on anti-transgender advertising, but Harris dismissed the issue, pointing out that “under the Donald Trump administration, these surgeries were available on a medical-need basis to people in the federal prison system.”
“And I honestly think that Trump campaign ad is a bit like throwing rocks if you live in a glass house,” she said.
Polls show Harris and Trump are essentially tied in most swing states as both campaigns try to sway voters before November 5. Harris’ appearance on Fox News came amid a series of interviews over the past week. She was interviewed on CBS’s prestigious news show 60 Minutes, spoke to the audience of the talk show The View, appeared on the podcast Call Her Daddy and spoke with radio host Charlamagne tha God on Tuesday.
Harris is also reportedly in negotiations to appear on Joe Rogan’s podcast – the most popular podcast in the US, which has a large following among young men. Trump, who declined to participate in a second CNN debate with Harris, has said he will appear on Rogan’s podcast.
This was Harris’ first sit-down interview with Fox News, although her running mate, Tim Walz, has appeared on the network several times. Pete Buttigieg, the Secretary of Transportation, was a regular presence on the screens of Fox News, with his calm responses to sometimes hostile questions often going viral and delighting Democrats.
