Harris isn’t giving the specifics some undecided voters say they want

However, despite the fact that the Democratic contender has made it quite obvious that she is not Donald Trump, she has either the unwillingness or the inability to provide a detailed plan of the specific actions that she would take if she were elected as the 47th president.

In an interview that took place on Tuesday, the Vice President primarily adhered to broad themes and headlines on her economic strategy. These were similar to those that she had previously discussed in a speech that focused on the big picture of policy and in her address to the convention. On the other hand, a candidate accused of riding on “vibes” and riding on a wave of delight has refused to be pinned down on particulars and details. Instead, she cited her principles and past to speak to the fact that she is a person of integrity.

In answering National Association of Black Journalists questions on Tuesday, she asked how she would ease the “squeeze” many Americans feel about child and elder care. She said her goal was making sure that no family would have to pay more than seven percent of its income on related expenses. However, she did not provide a road plan for how she would move major social policy reform through what is sure to be a polarized Congress in the coming year, nor did she specify how she would pay for it during that time.

Harris was strong on desire, weak on specifics, and seemed to land on both sides of the issue when it came to talking about another intractable subject, which was the battle between Israel and Hamas. There is no question in my mind that this war must come to an end. In addition, it must come to an end as quickly as one can,” she stated. In addition, the manner that this will be accomplished is by reaching an agreement over the hostages and a truce. And in order to accomplish that goal, we are working nonstop around the clock. She continued by saying, “An excessive number of Palestinians who were not responsible for their deaths have been killed.”

Few people would disagree with her assessment of the situation; yet, the United States has been working toward the illusion of a deal for several months. There is no indication that Israel and Hamas are interested in reaching a deal. And after several months of diplomatic efforts that have been unsuccessful, the White House appears to be taking a break. It may be unreasonable to anticipate that Harris, who is a part of the administration that is currently in power, will disagree with Biden regarding the war. Moreover, she is powerless to halt it on her own. Her hedging and repeating soundbites over the past few weeks, on the other hand, offer very little evidence of fresh ideas.

Although her performance in the debate last week gave the impression that she was strong, Harris is not often a brilliant political athlete when it comes to spontaneous, high-pressure media sitdowns. For example, former President Bill Clinton is a good example of this. She also is not blessed with the same natural talent as Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren to delve deeply on policy issues. While Trump speaks frequently in a spewing stream of consciousness and is disseminating dangerous lies, this makes her vulnerable to attacks by the Trump campaign and right-wing media that aver that her “word salads” establish she cannot be president.

The question that could define the election

All of this puts forward two important questions. What difference does it make that Harris is not really a policy expert? In addition, is it really possible that this most peculiar of elections would be decided by something as traditional as a policy platform?

As a matter of fact, Harris is offering herself to the American people as a momentary opportunity to escape the resentment and hatred that has been caused by the Trump administration. In order to accomplish her primary objective, which was to expose the former president’s crazy conduct and demonstrate that he is unsuited for the Oval Office, she was successful in provoking him throughout their argument.

The days when presidential elections were determined by lengthy policy speeches – if such speeches ever existed – have been washed away by the era of social media and by the sound and fury that is exemplified by the Republican nominee. And given that Harris is a last-minute replacement for President Joe Biden, it should not come as a surprise that she does not have a policy shop that has been consistently producing proposals for a long time.

Elections involve options that are less clearly defined and more emotionally charged, yet issues are important. Of course, the very connection that the voters have to their candidate oftentimes hinges on an intuitive sense of he knows them and will look out for them, even as Trump’s supporters might feel obliged to buy into his harsh words over immigration. Perhaps it is just the feeling that with her at the helm of the Democratic ticket, a new and better future is within sight.

Whatever the motive, Vice President Biden might see success driven by two things: her own policy opinions on subjects such as abortion and her phenomenal success with those issues. Because of this, the presidency, more than any other high office, is a test of temperament in addition to the gravitas of policy.

In spite of this, those who are searching for a more nuanced approach might be dissatisfied with the Democratic nominee. At or about its most primitive is the policy list that has just been posted on the website of the Harris campaign. And I wish you all good luck in determining if she’d be open to doing a split with Biden so that she can better tackle the world’s most important challenges, including the war in Ukraine, China’s challenge to status as super power, and Iran’s nuclear program.

The fact that the vice president has not yet delivered a big speech on foreign policy since she was nominated as the Democratic contender is a cause for concern for those who are curious about how she would govern the free world.

The fact that Harris is reluctant to participate in a series of major media interviews or town hall meetings, as well as the fact that she prefers to communicate with pleasant social media influencers and local media, is just contributing to the lack of transparency on her opinions. On the other hand, she is not running in a vacuum; her opponent, who is not disciplined, is not exactly a policy wonk. There are times when Trump seems to care more about himself than he does about ideas, and he frequently makes rash decisions regarding the goals of his administration.

Furthermore, it would be prudent for Harris to refrain from embracing stances that have the potential to frighten away dissatisfied Republicans and moderate suburban voters whom she is attempting to conquer. Already, staunch conservatives such as former Vice President Dick Cheney and former Wyoming Representative Liz Cheney, who view Donald Trump as a threat to the republic’s very existence, have discovered a way to support the Democratic nominee.

Voters want to know more about Harris

But the recent polls do show that she does have an opportunity to grab the spotlight where people are curious to know more about her. And there is still such a huge segment of people who would be interested to know how she would alleviate their economic woes and other problems, including the factor of high costs. A pre-presidential debate poll conducted by the New York Times/Siena College revealed that 28 percent of likely voters said they were interested in hearing more about Harris, while just nine percent said the same regarding the former president.

Additionally, voters in the handful of swing states that will determine the outcome of the election have expressed to CNN that, despite the fact that they were impressed with her performance during the debate, they still require additional specifics. If Kamala Harris is serious about her goal of elevating the middle class, the question is: how? Last week, Linda Rooney shared with John King of CNN that she voted for Nikki Haley, a former governor of South Carolina, in the Republican primary election. Despite the fact that Rooney, who hails from the suburbs of Philadelphia, has expressed his uncertainty regarding the Democratic nominee’s stances on fracking and other topics, he has decided not to vote for Trump.

Antonio Munoz, a veteran and former police officer who operates a taco cafe in Nevada, is leaning toward Harris but is upset that she has not done more to specify her vows to support small companies. Munoz is urging Harris to make a commitment to helping small businesses. The statement that Munoz made to King was as follows: “I’ve been checking her website, and you read it, but it’s not specific.” When it comes to overcoming the challenges posed by inflation, which has resulted in significant losses for a great number of companies, we require a different strategy. She needs to adopt a more forthright tone.

Trump may have fewer targets to criticize if there is a lack of specifics. However, there is a possibility that this will leave Harris without a robust defense. Every day, she is subjected to criticism in the form of advertisements in battleground states that make fun of her as an architect of the unpopular “Bidenomics” economic strategy. It is possible that she is vowing to take action against stores that are allegedly engaging in price gouging, but during her interview on Tuesday in Philadelphia, she did not address the subject that is dominating the minds of millions of Americans and instead shifted her focus to a different message.

Does the cost of groceries continue to be excessively high? Indeed. Is there any additional work that needs to be done? Indeed. And I can tell you, I do believe that I feel that I provide a new generation of leadership for our country that is about, in particular, turning the page on an era that, unfortunately, has shown us attempts by some to stir fear and to sow division in our country,” Harris added.

The vice president did highlight her plan to expand the child tax credit to $6,000, her proposal to increase the tax deduction for small businesses to $50,000, and her push to increase housing stock and provide aid to first-time homebuyers. All of these plans were included in her strategy to encourage the launch of new small businesses. However, she spoke in generalities rather than providing step-by-step instructions, which is something that she does rather frequently.

And according to the one and only other woman to be nominated for the presidency by a major party, that is precisely how things ought to be. Hillary Clinton, the former secretary of state, shrugged off Harris’s demands for an infinite supply of policy blueprints.

“No, she’s not required to do that,” Clinton said in the podcast “On with Kara Swisher,” published on Monday. “I’m just going to cut straight to the chase.”

In her statement, Clinton stated, “Policy details are not going to do it.” “I believe that I have published more policies than anyone else has ever done… Additionally, I discussed the economy on a daily basis; yet, it was not until after the election that I was informed that I had never discussed the economy any longer. In short, it is campaign policy about the demonstration that you can govern based on your principles in a way that can make peoples’ lives better.

In other words, Clinton stated that the main message by Harris was right, which was “I am going to help you, I am going to protect you, and I am going to try to provide opportunities for you.”