Kamala Harris faces historic challenge in running as a sitting VP: From the Politics Desk

Welcome to the online version of From the policy deskevening bulletin that brings you the latest reporting and analysis from the campaign trail, the White House and Capitol Hill from the NBC News Politics team.

In today’s edition, national political reporter Steve Kornacki explains the historic challenges facing Kamala Harris as sitting VP running for president. Plus, we explore why Michelle Obama hasn’t campaigned for Harris since the summer convention and Judge Jeffries’ vision for Democrats regaining control of the House.

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Harris faces a historic challenge in running as a sitting VP

By Steve Kornacki

Kamala Harris is the third presidential candidate to run as vice president in the past half century. And lastly NBC News survey He emphasizes the unpopularity of the administration he serves created a unique challenge for him.

Joe Biden’s job approval rating for the presidency is around 43%, where it has been for most of his term. That was low enough to weaken Biden against Donald Trump this year, prompting Democratic leaders to push him aside in favor of Harris.

The negativity about Biden goes far beyond questions about his age and acuity. In our poll, only 25% of voters said his administration’s policies have helped their families, while 45% said they have hurt them. (By contrast, 44% of voters said Trump’s policies as president have helped their families.)

An NBC News poll also shows that public dissatisfaction with the Biden presidency is shaping Harris’ views. More respondents to our poll said they were worried about Trump continuing Biden’s policies than he was about re-implementing his previous policies.

The headwinds make Harris’s assignment very different from the last two VPs working alone. Al Gore in 2000 and George HW Bush in 1988 were tied for presidents with strong job approval ratings, according to an NBC News poll at the time: 60% for Bill Clinton and 59% for Ronald Reagan.

Sustainability was a key theme of Bush’s ’88 proposal. “After two big periods, the switch will be made,” he said convention acceptance speech that year. “But when you need to change horses in midstream, doesn’t it make sense to switch to one that goes the same way?” Reagan himself was actively involved in the election campaign, and Bush easily defeated Michael Dukakis.

Gore faced a dilemma with Clinton, whose second term was dominated by the revelation of an affair with a White House intern and the impeachment saga it spawned. This dealt a major blow to Clinton’s personal image: In the weeks before the 2000 election, an ABC News poll showed that only 33% had a favorable opinion of Clinton. But the economy was booming, there was broad agreement about the state of the country, and Clinton’s policies were popular.

Whether Gore would bring Clinton into a high-profile role on the campaign trail became his mini-drama that fall. Ultimately, Gore chose to distance himself publicly from Clinton herself, hoping that voters would associate her with policies they liked rather than with a man they were wary of. Whether Gore miscalculated remains a matter of dispute.

Going back a bit in history provides a better parallel for Harris’ plight. In 1968, VP Hubert Humphrey succeeded Lyndon Johnson when Johnson, whose popularity was low due to the Vietnam War, withdrew from the race. After securing the nomination of a divided Democratic Party, Humphrey trailed Republican Richard Nixon by a significant margin—until early October split sharply with Johnson over the war. Humphrey quickly gained momentum and closed the gap, though he still fell short on Election Day.

But there is no central issue in the current campaign like Vietnam’s in ’68. So if Harris and his team have had an instinct to break away from Biden in recent weeks, it’s not so clear where they’ll do it, or if they’ll get a meaningful jump. And based on it solution of the question Lately, it’s unclear whether Harris wants to try.

Despite her call to “do something” for Harris, Michelle Obama has yet to participate in the campaign

By Monica Alba, Carol E. Lee, and Kristen Welker

Barack Obama started to oppose Kamala Harris. Bill Clinton is holding a series of campaign events for her in the war zone.

However, the Democratic superstar, many in the party, would like to see him stay out of the campaign so far to help Harris.

With the election just 21 days away, Michelle Obama has worked behind the scenes to boost turnout in key states, but she has yet to schedule an official speech for Harris after the Democratic National Convention. Two people familiar with the matter said the former first lady expressed fresh concerns about security in the wake of two assassination attempts on former President Donald Trump.

Both Harris and Trump receive a letter an unprecedented level of security After Trump faced two public attempts on his life this year. More Secret Service agents and measures like bulletproof glass are now common on the campaign trail.

“After the two assassination attempts against former President Trump, the staff of all the former presidents and first ladies realized a new reality, and so did the Secret Service,” a person familiar with the matter called it a “wake-up call for everyone.” to redouble their security efforts “in light of the new reality”.

Its low profile stands out after that rousing speech At the Democratic National Convention in August, he urged members of his party not to be complacent about elections, repeatedly urging voters to “do something!” called.

Michelle Obama is expected to add Harris campaign events to her schedule as Election Day nears, five people familiar with the plan say, but nothing has been finalized. He is expected to play a role in “closing arguments” for the Democratic campaign, three of the people said.

By the time voting closes on November 5, one source said, “he will have made his voice heard.”

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Hakeem Jeffries is keeping calm over the chaos in the House battle

By Ali Vitali and Kyle Stewart

ALBUQUERQUE, NM — As Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., has seen it, House Democrats haven’t held a majority in this Congress — but they’ve run it.

From avoiding a government shutdown to raising the nation’s debt limit and passing the annual defense authorization bill, “we’ve been consistently asked to rise to the occasion,” Jeffries said. He said this in an exclusive interview with NBC News stop here during the last campaign. “Democrats have almost certainly provided the necessary support to get things done.”

Now he wants the gavel to go with the management.

Jeffries hopes to win back the House majority with a “people over politics” message and a promise to curb House GOP chaos. If she succeeds, it would mark the historic Nancy Pelosi’s speakership (she was the first woman elected to the top office) with another milestone for her party: electing the first black speaker of the House of Representatives. But to do that, Democrats would have to flip at least four House seats from red to blue while helping some of their most vulnerable districts.

Jeffries, along with other top House Democratic leaders, has been logging miles from New York to California, traversing some of the country’s most tortuous battlegrounds.

The poll shows that the race for control of the House of Representatives is tight for a chamber that has (at times) operated with thin majorities for the past two years.

Jeffries learned from the chaotic nature of this Congress — from the multi-day, 17-round vote to elect Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., as speaker, less than a year later to oust McCarthy as punishment for working with Democrats to increase the nation’s debt. limit.

“Stillness is a deliberate decision,” Jeffries said when asked how he steered his caucus out of the turmoil. “Many times the nature of the emergencies we have to deal with cannot be controlled, but you can control how you respond.”

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ICYMI: Check it out our exclusive interview Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., elaborated on the way to preserve and expand the House Republican majority.

That’s all for the Policy Desk for now. If you have feedback – like it or not – send us an email politicsnewsletter@nbcuni.com

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