As Democrats arrive in Chicago for next week’s national convention, there’s a touch of hubris in the air – and the risk that overconfidence could infect the room.
Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Tim Walz, have enjoyed weeks of near-flawless performances, large enthusiastic crowds and surging polls. It's now the guy at the top of the Republican ticket who looks like an out-of-touch, doddering old man. It’s easy to imagine them getting a bit cocky.
I expect the convention to go well and to firm up Harris’ profile. But there’s still a tough battle ahead. There are advantages to a short campaign, but there are risks too: There’s less time to recover from a mistake or miscalculation.
I'd rather have Harris' hand than former President Donald Trump's. But the real test is how she deals with what Republicans see as her vulnerabilities.
Albert R. HuntAug. 9, 2024
Much of this revolves around Harris’ miserable run for the presidency in 2019, when she positioned herself as a left winger. She is starting to walk back some of those positions, from having favored a government-run health care plan to opposing hydraulic fracturing (better known as fracking) and tough border restrictions – all issues on which Trump already is hammering her.
Harris is not the first politician to shift on issues. Trump has gone from being pro-choice to advocating a total ban on abortion to now saying it’s an issue for states to decide. Presumably, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, Trump’s running mate, no longer believes Trump is........