Harris' 'worst moments' as vice president have come during live interviews, which may explain why she avoids the press, CNN analyst says

CNN political analyst and Axios national political reporter Alex Thompson said Monday that while Vice President Harris would “definitely” do an interview, she was cautious because many of her “worst moments” in the Biden administration have occurred during live interviews.

“The question is, who is she interviewing? Is it a much more sympathetic host? Is it a more serious, in-depth interview, how long is it, is it edited, is it live? All of these questions are part of Harris’s caution, this extraordinary caution about interviews is why some Democrats were nervous about nominating her. It’s why people like Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer were more in favor of an open process, because the fact is that almost all of her worst moments as vice president have happened in live interviews,” Thompson said.

Harris has gone 36 days without giving a media interview or holding a formal press conference since becoming the presumptive Democratic nominee in late July.

CNN host reaches out to Harris campaign spokesperson for help on VP's schedule as she avoids press: 'She has time' for interview

CNN political analyst Alex Thompson said Monday that Harris' team was cautious about her decision to do an interview because her “worst moments” have occurred during live interviews. (Screenshot/CNN)

Matt Gorman, a former adviser to Sen. Tim Scott's presidential campaign, said Harris needed to do an interview, but he understood why she was hesitant.

“The other part of it is, as I’ve seen with many candidates, debate prep is also media prep. Media prep is debate prep. You hear the lines, you can refine your arguments, you get better. Every candidate I’ve worked with gets better the more interviews they do, because they get more specific and they really know what, outside of the bubble, people are going to attack them about or question them about,” Gorman said.

Meghan Hays, who worked in the White House under Biden, said she doesn't think Harris should attend interviews, but she should start preparing for the debates.

“I think it’s a media story, right? And I think if you don’t take control of it, it’s going to continue to snowball in the media, and then it becomes a higher-stakes thing than if you had just done the interview. So now that she’s past the convention, she’s got momentum, they’ve raised a ton of money. I think she should probably sit down for an interview,” she said.

Hays suggested starting with a morning show or a “softer” interview and suggested building from there. She reiterated that she didn’t think Harris needed to do an interview before the convention because of the positive momentum she had.

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Vice President Kamala Harris appears onstage during the Democratic National Convention on August 22, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, file)

Harris recently declined an interview with TIME magazine, which ran a glowing article about the vice president.

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Thompson said the stakes for Harris giving an interview were now much higher.

“Any mistake she makes will be immediately picked up by Trump and his campaign,” he added.