Republican leaders are cautioning party members against engaging in overtly racist and sexist attacks on Vice President Kamala Harris as they and former President Donald Trump’s campaign scramble to adapt to the reality of her likely candidacy just months before the election.
During a private meeting of House Republicans, the National Republican Congressional Committee’s chairman advised lawmakers to focus on critiquing Harris’ policy positions rather than her personal attributes. House Speaker Mike Johnson echoed this sentiment, emphasizing that the election should center on policies rather than personalities and insisting that Harris’s ethnicity and gender should not be part of the discussion.
The Republicans’ guidance clearly reflects the tightrope they’re walking when it comes to facing off against a Democratic candidate who stands to make history as the first woman, first Black woman, and first person of South Asian descent to potentially become President. It’s no small feat and certainly no easy target for the GOP, which now finds itself in a delicate dance.
Trump’s track record of racially and sexually charged comments is like a ticking time bomb, with every disparaging remark risking the alienation of key voter groups. Suburban women, people of color, and younger voters—demographics Trump’s camp has been desperately courting—could easily be turned off by such attacks. The Republicans are probably hoping to avoid a full-blown disaster, where their attempts to undermine Harris could backfire spectacularly and further isolate them from the very voters they need to win.
Some of Trump’s allies have begun portraying Harris, who has held positions as a district attorney, attorney general, and senator, as a token hire based solely on diversity rather than merit. Wyoming Representative Harriet Hageman criticized Harris’s selection as a reflection of a superficial commitment to diversity.
With President Biden’s recent announcement of his withdrawal from the race, Republicans have intensified their focus on Harris, aiming to link her to unpopular Biden policies and scrutinizing her past as a prosecutor to accuse her of being lenient on crime. Trump campaign officials have also suggested that Harris is involved in covering up Biden’s health issues.
Johnson argued that Harris is responsible for the current administration’s policies and their outcomes. He has positioned Harris as a co-author of the Biden administration’s policies and criticized them as detrimental.
Tony Fabrizio, the Trump campaign pollster, says Harris’s candidacy doesn’t change voters’ dissatisfaction with issues like the economy, inflation, and crime. He predicts voters will scrutinize Harris’s liberal record before her role as Biden’s vice president.
Trump’s campaign said in a statement, “Kamala Harris is just as weak, failed and incompetent as Joe Biden — and she’s also dangerously liberal.”
The National Republican Senatorial Committee chairman, Senator Steve Daines, labeled Harris as excessively liberal, contrasting her with Biden. Trump described Harris as more radical than Biden, suggesting that her policies would be even more disastrous.
Trump’s rhetoric has historically included harsh personal attacks on women, from his comments about former Fox News host Megyn Kelly to his critiques of Carly Fiorina and Letitia James. In a recent social media post, Trump disparaged Harris’s previous performance in the 2020 Democratic primary and referenced her past relationship with Willie Brown.
Stephanie Grisham, a former Trump aide, predicts that Trump’s attacks on Harris will be especially aggressive. She believes Trump’s tendency to target women personally will manifest in his campaign against Harris.
Representative Maxine Waters of California, a prominent member of the Congressional Black Caucus, anticipates severe attacks from Trump and his allies but suggests that such tactics might backfire. She believes Trump’s arrogance could lead him to make missteps.
If Trump and Harris face off in debates, the dynamic might differ from previous encounters. Pollster Neil Newhouse suggests that Trump may need to adopt a more cautious approach with Harris compared to his debates with Hillary Clinton, given Harris’s relatively fresh political presence and different public perception.