Democratic presidential candidate and Vice President of the United States, Kamala Harris, gave her first interview with Fox News on Wednesday night, breaking out of her ideological comfort zone for the first time since entering the 2024 election race. The interview with host Bret Baier sparked heated debates on topics such as border control, illegal immigration, and policy positions, creating a tense atmosphere. The reactions following the interview were equally intense.
Former Trump administration spokesperson Sean Spicer, now a contributor to “NewsNation,” expressed disappointment with Harris’s performance, claiming she lacked mature ideas. He criticized her approach of tailoring her statements based on the audience, stating, “Today was yet another example of ‘I (referring to Harris) will say what I want to say based on who I’m talking to,’ and that did not change tonight.”
Some of Harris’s supporters remained neutral about her performance.
Democratic strategist Shaniqua McClendon noted that while Harris did not get the opportunity for a second debate with Donald Trump, she did have a chance to debate one of Trump’s biggest supporters, referring to Baier.
McClendon believed that Harris’s confrontational exchange with Baier could leave a lasting impression on Democrats, and possibly even some Republicans.
Investigative journalist and talk show host Geraldo Rivera recently announced his support for Harris, impressed by her assertive attitude in the interview, contrasting with the image he had seen in previous interviews.
However, Rivera expressed confusion on NBC’s “Dan Abrams Live” about what he perceived as Harris’s lack of preparation.
He questioned, “How could she not be ready to address questions about Laken Riley and Mollie Tibbetts?” Rivera believed that a bit of empathy towards high-profile victims of violence perpetrated by illegal immigrants could score Harris some points, calling it “Politics 101.”
In February of this year, 22-year-old college student Laken Riley went missing while out for a run, later found dead on the University of Georgia campus. Jose Antonio Ibarra, a 26-year-old undocumented immigrant from Venezuela, was arrested the next day and charged with kidnapping and murder.
In July 2018, 20-year-old college student Mollie Tibbetts disappeared while jogging in her hometown in Iowa. A month later, Cristhian Bathena Rivera, a 24-year-old illegal immigrant from Mexico, confessed to kidnapping and killing her, dumping her body in a cornfield.
Harris’s former aide Symone Sanders-Townsend expressed dissatisfaction with Baier’s conduct.
Sanders-Townsend tweeted, “I’ve never seen anything like what happened tonight, the interviewer seemed like a different person, rude, misleading, directly quoting from Trump-Pence’s press releases.”
ESPN commentator Stephen A. Smith criticized Baier for questioning Harris about President Joe Biden’s cognitive abilities.
He asked, “How could you put the Democratic presidential candidate in a position to betray her boss?”
Smith expressed on “NewsNation’s” “CUOMO” show that he hoped through the host to gain a deeper understanding of how Harris would lead once in office.
He suggested asking Harris about various issues and what her presidency would entail. Smith emphasized the importance of delving into economic matters and addressing inflation.
Journalist Chris Cillizza stated that Harris’s key to victory lay in maintaining distance from Biden.
Cillizza noted in an interview on “On Balance,” “If she wins, it will be because she can say, ‘I am not Joe Biden.'” He added that her campaign team or herself must recognize the need to separate from a president with approval ratings at 40% or lower.
Former President Trump praised Baier for his interview with “liar” Harris, deeming it “tough but very fair.”
Trump took to social media to laud Baier’s interview, describing Harris as the “worst Vice President ever” and commending Baier for conducting a challenging yet fair interview that highlighted Harris’s incompetence.
Trump had sarcastically mentioned earlier that it was “wise” for Harris to agree to the interview with Baier, as he is known for being “fair and balanced,” despite often being mild with left-leaning individuals at cocktail parties.
Last summer, Baier had interviewed Trump, persistently questioning him about the alleged irregularities in the 2020 election and how sensitive documents were handled after leaving the White House.
Spokesperson for the Trump team, Karoline Leavitt, criticized Harris’s display of anger and defensiveness during the program, suggesting she was unable to bear the responsibility of addressing the issues facing the American people. Leavitt asserted that if Harris couldn’t handle the pressure of an interview with Fox News, she certainly couldn’t handle the pressure of being President.
According to reports from “World Journal,” Baier privately expressed concerns to colleagues after the interview, feeling uneasy from the start and mentioning Harris’s tardiness of about 15 minutes, likening it to the tactic of “icing the kicker” in American football.
Baier also revealed post-interview that he found it challenging to steer the conversation back when the topic of immigration was first broached with Harris, stating, “I felt like it might be difficult to redirect unless I interjected.” He noted similarities to a past interview with former President Obama.
In an interview with conservative radio host Mark Levin, Baier expressed his frustration with the Harris interview, lamenting that he had many more questions left to ask.