{"id":2318587,"date":"2024-08-03T09:41:02","date_gmt":"2024-08-03T13:41:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/republicans-walk-fine-line-in-flipping-attacks-to-define-harris-as-weird-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-08-03T09:45:23","modified_gmt":"2024-08-03T13:45:23","slug":"republicans-walk-fine-line-in-flipping-attacks-to-define-harris-as-weird-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/republicans-walk-fine-line-in-flipping-attacks-to-define-harris-as-weird-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"Republicans walk fine line in flipping attacks to define Harris as \u2018weird\u2019 &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">30<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Frepublicans-walk-fine-line-in-flipping-attacks-to-define-harris-as-weird-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2318587&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article from\u2062 the Washington Examiner discusses how\u200c Republican strategists \u2063are focusing their campaign efforts on portraying Vice \u200bPresident \u2064Kamala \u2064Harris as \u2063&#8221;weird&#8221; in the lead-up to the 2024 presidential\u200d election.\u2064 With Harris now at the forefront of the Democratic ticket,\u2064 Republicans are attempting to \u200bredirect Democratic attacks on figures\u200d like former President Trump to shape public perception of Harris. The piece\u2064 notes a\u2062 shift in\u200d strategy regarding how Republicans discuss Harris, as they would highlight\u200d her <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/brutal-watch-gov-desantis-treat-a-cnn-reporter-exactly-the-way-she-deserved-to-be-treated\/\" title=\"BRUTAL: Watch Gov. DeSantis Treat a CNN \u2018Reporter\u2019 Exactly the Way She Deserved to Be Treated\">long-winded<\/a> remarks and unusual behavior while emphasizing the need for disciplined \u2064messaging to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/my-former-friends-have-joined-the-fascists\/\" title=\"My Former Friends Have Joined the Fascists\">avoid <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/sen-loeffler-fires-back-after-ossoff-accuses-her-of-campaigning-with-kkk-member\/\" title=\"Sen. Loeffler Fires Back After Ossoff Accuses Her of Campaigning with KKK Member\">personal attacks<\/a><\/a> that\u2062 could be counterproductive. \u200cGOP\u200b operatives suggest that while critiquing \u200dHarris&#8217;s quirks could make her appear less relatable, they also caution against irrelevant personal \u2063attacks and racial questions that might alienate\u2064 voters. The article emphasizes the evolving dynamics of political campaigning\u200c and\u2062 the careful navigation required\u2064 to\u2062 effectively define\u200c candidates in a competitive \u200belectoral landscape.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Republicans walk fine line in flipping attacks to define Harris as &lsquo;weird&rsquo;<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1719945\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p><em>Kamala Harris&rsquo;s ascension to the top of the ticket has energized the Democratic base and refocused Republican attack lines. With fewer than 100 days to go until the election, defining Kamala Harris will take place at break-neck speed. This&nbsp;<\/em>Washington Examiner<em>&nbsp;series will take a closer look at various aspects of her campaign and persona.&nbsp;<strong>Part Six is on &ldquo;Kamala&rsquo;s &lsquo;weird&rsquo; factor.&rdquo;<\/strong><\/em>&nbsp;Read&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/3101136\/kamala-harris-police-image-issues\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">parts one<\/a>,<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/policy\/healthcare\/3102482\/harris-abortion-advocate-her-top-campaign-plank\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">&nbsp;two<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/3103747\/kamala-harris-liberal-record-forget\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">three<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/3104308\/border-czar-kamala-harris-immigration-record-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">four<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/policy\/energy-and-environment\/3107998\/harris-climate-hawk-tries-to-move-toward-middle\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>five<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Republican strategists are turning Democrats&rsquo; attacks on former President Donald Trump and Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) back around to keep up a consistent stream of messaging over the last three and a half years &mdash; Vice President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/kamala-harris\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Kamala Harris&rsquo;s\">Kamala Harris<\/a> is the &ldquo;weird&rdquo; one in the 2024 presidential contest.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Weird&rdquo; has become a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/daily-memo\/3105253\/the-short-strange-life-of-weird\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"centerpiece\">centerpiece<\/a> of the Harris campaign in recent weeks, with Democrats going above and beyond to portray Trump and Vance as &ldquo;weird.&rdquo; This may have been preempting a Republican effort to cast Harris as the true &ldquo;weird&rdquo; one, pointing to her famous long-winded comments and curious behavior. But, according to two GOP operatives, recent developments have completely changed the dynamics of the Republican strategy.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/3101136\/kamala-harris-police-image-issues\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>PART ONE: KAMALA THE COP<\/strong><\/a><br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/policy\/healthcare\/3102482\/harris-abortion-advocate-her-top-campaign-plank\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>PART TWO: KAMALA THE ABORTION ADVOCATE<\/strong><\/a><br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/3103747\/kamala-harris-liberal-record-forget\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>PART THREE: KAMALA THE LIBERAL<\/strong><\/a><br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/3104308\/border-czar-kamala-harris-immigration-record-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>PART FOUR: KAMALA THE BORDER CZAR<\/strong><\/a><br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/policy\/energy-and-environment\/3107998\/harris-climate-hawk-tries-to-move-toward-middle\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title><strong>PART FIVE: KAMALA THE CLIMATE HAWK<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The <em>Washington Examiner<\/em> spoke with veteran GOP operative <a href=\"https:\/\/holtstrategy.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Terry Holt<\/a> and a Midwest GOP official, both of whom agreed that to pull off a victory in November, the Trump campaign needs to tread carefully with its messaging and exert a great amount of discipline.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I still think they&rsquo;re grasping at the one silver bullet that&rsquo;s going to take out Kamala Harris, but I think it&rsquo;s going to be more a campaign of a death by 1000 cuts,&rdquo; Holt said, referring to the Trump campaign&rsquo;s efforts to attack Harris.<\/p>\n<p>The past week, he argued, showcased that the main goal of the Trump <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/campaign\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>campaign<\/a> should be discipline.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s going to require a more disciplined campaign than we&rsquo;ve seen in the last few days,&rdquo; Holt said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s going to require some buy-in from Donald Trump if he&rsquo;s going to be on message.&rdquo;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I think there are an awful lot of instincts that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/Donald-Trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Donald Trump<\/a> has to tear someone down that may not work as well on Kamala Harris. But she&rsquo;s got the record to be defined if they can be very disciplined about sticking to the conversation,&rdquo; he continued. &ldquo;And whether or not Kamala Harris is black is not on message.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Both Holt and the Midwest Republican official said that the Trump campaign was taken off guard by the sudden transition from Biden to Harris, and has struggled to adapt its messaging.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s like turning an aircraft carrier,&rdquo; Holt said. &ldquo;You&rsquo;ve got everybody sort of bought into the message. You have your candidate who feels extremely comfortable with his stump speech. And you&rsquo;ve got a set of factors that you&rsquo;re going to identify in the polling, where she is stronger than Biden and where she needs to improve with Biden supporters. So it&rsquo;s a pivot that that&rsquo;s on a very truncated schedule, and it&rsquo;s gonna be important to get it right.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/GOP\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>GOP<\/a> official expressed frustration with personal attacks against Harris from the Trump campaign, expressing skepticism that anything other than policy criticisms would be effective. They cast doubt on the rationale of Trump&rsquo;s questioning of Harris&rsquo;s racial identity, that is to portray her as a chameleon.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;You can point out someone&rsquo;s a chameleon without delving into stuff that&rsquo;s irrelevant or counterproductive,&rdquo; they argued &ldquo;Like voters care about the fact they can&rsquo;t pay their bills. They care about border security. They care about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/Inflation\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>inflation<\/a>. Arguing over whether Kamala Harris qualifies as black, or Indian, or biracial. Who is that convincing in the Midwest?&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Certain attacks on Harris&rsquo;s personality were fair game, they argued, if it could be connected to her political positions.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It definitely makes her seem less relatable,&rdquo; they said, referring to Republican attacks based on Harris&rsquo;s long-winded comments and gaffes. &ldquo;So that stuff, for being long-winded, it&rsquo;s not so much of an issue. In fact, it &hellip; does underline the point of her being out of touch. If she&rsquo;s going on these weird, long soliloquies about &hellip; the passage of time and understanding, what understanding means&hellip; when she tries putting a hat on a hat, rhetorically, yeah, we&rsquo;ll absolutely highlight that, because it&rsquo;s just content of, &lsquo;what are you talking about?&rsquo;&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The official described Harris&rsquo;s &ldquo;weirdness&rdquo; as a wildcard &mdash; they noted the Harris campaign leaning into her &ldquo;goofiness&rdquo; and memeability could go either way. They drew a parallel between Harris and former United Kingdom Prime Minister <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/Boris-Johnson\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Boris Johnson<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Look at Boris Johnson, his weirdness was what elevated him, and it&rsquo;s also what killed him,&rdquo; they said. &ldquo;The weirdness was able to elevate him because he seemed like a goofy regular guy, it was like, &lsquo;Oh, it&rsquo;s just Boris.&rsquo; But then when he actually ran into stuff, and he started stumbling, people no longer viewed that as adorable.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title><strong><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The official argued that if approached correctly, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/Republicans\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Republicans<\/a> could cripple Harris going on the &ldquo;weirdness&rdquo; angle, but only if connected with her record.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;If you leave yourself exposed like that, you have to make sure you&rsquo;re actually combining that weirdness with competency, and that&rsquo;s why &hellip; if we lean into going after her record and her inconsistencies, the goofy person, goofiness is no longer endearing,&rdquo; they said. &ldquo;It comes off as slick. Oh, this person&rsquo;s trying to be relatable. There&rsquo;s nothing relatable about this person. They&rsquo;re constantly changing positions. They&rsquo;re trying to appeal to whoever. The goofiness is no longer just a nice little charm, it&rsquo;s them just pandering it effectively.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1719945\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1719945\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Republicans are carefully navigating their strategy to label Kamala Harris as &#8220;weird&#8221; in light of her rise to the forefront of the Democratic ticket, which has invigorated party supporters and shifted Republican messaging. With less than 100 days until the election, efforts to define Harris are accelerating rapidly. This series from the Washington Examiner will delve into various facets of her campaign and persona, with Part Six focusing on her perceived &#8220;weirdness.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p>Republican strategists are flipping Democrats&#8217; criticisms of former President Donald Trump and Senator J.D. Vance (R-OH) back onto Harris, asserting that she is the true &#8220;weird&#8221; candidate in the 2024 race. The term &#8220;weird&#8221; has recently become a focal point for Harris&#8217;s campaign as Democrats have sought to paint Trump and Vance in a similar light. However, two GOP operatives suggest that recent changes have altered Republican tactics significantly.<\/p>\n<p>Terry Holt, a seasoned GOP strategist, along with another Midwest Republican official, emphasized that for Trump\u2019s campaign to succeed in November, it must maintain disciplined messaging. Holt remarked that while there may be attempts to find a singular effective attack against Harris, it will likely require multiple smaller critiques instead. He stressed that discipline is crucial for success moving forward.<\/p>\n<p>Both operatives noted that Trump&#8217;s team was caught off guard by Biden&#8217;s transition to Harris and has struggled with its messaging since then. They likened this adjustment process to turning an aircraft carrier\u2014slow and complex\u2014and highlighted the importance of getting it right given time constraints.<\/p>\n<p>The GOP official expressed skepticism about personal attacks on Harris being effective unless they relate directly to policy issues. They questioned whether Trump&#8217;s focus on questioning her racial identity would resonate with voters who care more about economic concerns like inflation or border security.<\/p>\n<p>While some personality critiques could be valid if tied back to her political stances\u2014such as portraying her long-winded speeches as indicative of being out-of-touch\u2014the officials warned against letting such attacks stray into irrelevant territory.<\/p>\n<p>They compared Harris&#8217;s situation with Boris Johnson\u2019s experience in UK politics; his quirky persona initially helped him but ultimately contributed to his downfall when he stumbled under pressure.<\/p>\n<p>In conclusion, they argued Republicans could effectively undermine Harris by linking any perceived weirdness directly back to her record rather than allowing it simply be seen as endearing or relatable behavior<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2653,"featured_media":2318588,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Joe-Biden-steps-back-Kamala.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[32438,32504,3756],"class_list":["post-2318587","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner","tag-kamala-harris","tag-political-strategy","tag-republicans"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Joe-Biden-steps-back-Kamala.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2318587","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2653"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2318587"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2318587\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2318588"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2318587"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2318587"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2318587"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}